Love Kills Slowly
by Kalyra-Anne
Summary: "So hold on, Klaus had a lover?" Elena asked, "Charlotte, she was an exquisite beauty, every boy of age wanted to be her suitor, but none loved her more than Niklaus." Said Elijah, "Lifetime after lifetime they we're reborn to find their one true love until they lose each other into death again... Until 1000 years ago" AU Story between Nik/Charlotte Klaulette (Tatia is Charlotte)
1. Preface

**AN: I'm back in the country and back into the swing of things. So I wrote this whilst I was away... And by that, I mean the prologue, this is going to be a short sweet multi-chapter fic and I'm already working on chapter 2 as chapter 1 is complete. Please let me know what you think of this and the next chapter will most likely be up on Tuesday, perhaps earlier...**

**This is my own take off of a youtube video I saw a few months ago and I fell in love with the concept, I hope you like my own little spin on it! :)**

_**IMPORTANT - EVERYBODY TATIA IS CHARLOTTE IN THIS FIC, this was written before the name Tatia came to pass and I personally like it better so please just bear this in mind. THANKS!**_

**Let me know what you thought in a review! Xx**

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><p>"Elijah, there is only one way that we can destroy Klaus once and for all, you have to tell me his weakness, please, I beg of you. It is the only way." Elena pleaded to one of the original brothers, having very little idea on just what she would find.<p>

"It is only legend, Elena. And it is once that I certainly am not familiar with myself, I only know the basics of it myself." Explained Elijah, he wanted to help, truly he did but he at the same time had sworn an oath to his brother long ago, ignoring the fact that he had broken it already several times in the past but the most recent doppelganger need not hear that little important detail.

"Anything will help." Elena encouraged and Elijah felt himself staring into her eyes which reminded him only of another time in another place, one that he did not think of often as he liked to shield that part of his past but now at the same time, he also knew that this may be the only final shot that they had and it would certainly weaken his older brother to the point of almost death and it would be that one crucial moment that they would need and they sure as hell would not get another chance, at least not for a few hundred years, if that.

And by that, he meant if they were extremely lucky.

So far, luck had been extremely far strained and it had been more than a good thousand years since he had last seen or heard of her...

Despite her doppelgangers... And this of course made him question the curse that Niklaus was under.

He still had not had the ability to break it as of yet, although he had come fairly close.

The Salvatore brothers were deeming as a fair distraction but it would not last long for secretly Elijah had changed sides as he proposed a deal to Elena a fortnight ago, of which she had accepted without a second thought but there was thing that he couldn't ensure, her survival.

Most called it folklore but he called it history.

And Elijah knew better as he was the most moral in the family, he knew trouble when he smelt it and it wasn't far off at all, that much, he did know.

But what he didn't realise was just how close it actually was.

"It's a story," began Elijah, "An old story that even I am unsure of the truth that is behind it."

"How did it begin?" asked Elena with curiosity, this was better than nothing and after all, they needed as much information as they could get.

"A shaman in a hunting village was a keeper of great prophecy's and some say that it occurred after a shooting star incident that night and others say that it came to her in a dream but nevertheless the prophecy remained the same." He told her, but his eyes glazed over before he could continue as he felt himself transport back in time.

_A young girl opened the wooden creaking door of the new home that she would now live in; they had travelled for weeks before settling in a forest away from another main village. _

_Her parents had decided that they would stay close to the village next door but far away to avoid the townspeople gossip as that was another reason as to why they had left their old village for the young girl's mother was not an ordinary woman. _

_She was a witch._

_But the others did not take too kindly to her for she had powers that were considered to be strange which was why they had decided to travel and visit long extended family that had not been forgotten._

_It was a scolding hot day with little breeze running through the shack that she now stayed in but if you were outside, you could feel the cool wind on your features and if there was one thing that the young girl loved, it was nature._

_She ran outside, ignoring the protests of her mother, demanding that her clothes be in pristine condition when she arrived back home, but the girl did not hear her as she ran for the surrounding wilderness of the forest around them, enjoying the bliss of being free and unaware of the future fate that she would have._

Elena cleared her throat and Elijah blinked his eyes a few times, reacquainting himself with his current surroundings.

"So this prophecy... Do you know what it is?" Elena asked

Elijah stood up and walked over to a nearby bookcase and carefully extracted to what looked to be leather bound journal of some sort with thick paper and perfect calligraphy writing that she wished she could do herself.

Elijah sat back down in his arm-chair and undid the clasps on the journal.

"This is not an ordinary book." Elijah stated, his voice sounded weaker than before but she did not question it, "Enlighten me," he cleared his own throat and handed her the book, "Can you read that?" he asked her

Her eyes took in the pages with great detail, the dark blackness of the ink against the yellowing paper, she ran her fingers over the paper but as far as she was concerned, she was confused, she had no idea what any of the words on the pages meant, it looked to be a completely foreign language to her but the pages were quite beautiful and looked as if they were meant to be in a museum of some sorts, like medieval times but she internally laughed at that thought.

She shook her head slightly, her eyebrows knitting themselves together as her lips formed a frown.

"I don't understand what any of this says, at all." Elena said disappointed, this was meant to be their last shot at bringing Klaus down, what the heck did her reading skills have to do with it? She couldn't help but think confused.

"That is what I feared." Commented Elijah, more thinking aloud rather than telling her bluntly but he supposed that they both of them worked either way.

"What do I have to do with this?" Elena asked confused, this was meant to be about some old story that would help bring down Klaus, right?

"It was a prophecy about two star-crossed lovers and lifetime after lifetime they we're reborn to find their one true love." Elijah began but Elena interrupted to translate into her own modern day words and to clarify that they were indeed on the same page, figuratively speaking.

"So hold on, Klaus had a lover?" she asked even more confused than before-hand

"Yes." He answered simply; there was really no other way to put it

"And by the last part, I'm assuming that they are each other's true love...?"

"Yes." He repeated

Her mind was deciphering was the middle of this line meant, it felt like a riddle to her almost.

"What does it mean by lifetime after lifetime, they we're reborn? How would that work?" she asked, running a hand through her hair as she tried to work it out herself but it just humanly wasn't possible, what he was suggesting.

Then again, she was talking to an original vampire that was more than a thousand years old so she then supposed that anything at this point in time could really be possible.

Thus, it was bringing her back to square one all over again.

"The rest of the prophecy will explain it." He assured her and she nodded for him to continue, "Lifetime after lifetime they we're reborn to find their one true love until they lose each other into death again."

"Wow, obviously, she is the one that has to pay the price every time." She said emotionally bewildered and she couldn't help but wonder if she would do the same thing for Stefan.

"No." Answered Elijah

"No?" she repeated

"How do you think he made the transition into a vampire?" Elijah pointed out and Elena gasped, her eyes widened on their own accord

There really was more to the story than she ever imagined.

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><p><strong>AN: Let me know what you thought! Thanks! <strong>**:)**** x**


	2. Chapter One

**AN: Okay, to be completely honest, I couldn't wait. I feel really in the zone about this idea and to write it down on paper is amazing. So, I hope that this is up to standard. If you would like to see the actual video, please let me know and I can send you the url... Guys, it's truly amazing and full credit to the creator, I am a huge fan. **

**Please! Please! PLEASE! Let me know what you thought in a review! I know that taking the time to review can be time-consuming but you are truly making my day and the more reviews, the quicker I write and type... And that's excluding this chapter as I had already pre-written it so it doesn't count but the one that I have recieved so far was amazing and thank-you very much. I really do love them and I want to know your general opinion and idea's. **

**So without further ado, thank-you and enjoy the next installment! :) xxx  
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><p><em>The young girl found herself running through the field of grass-seeds that came above her knees, she ran directly through them, to get to the forest of high tree's and cool shade.<em>

_The breeze intensified itself as she found herself running even faster, it was like a magnetic pull was pulling her closer to something, she could feel it in her muscles, and something was pushing her to go, she could feel it but she turned her head and no one was there guiding her so she ignored the feeling and kept herself going, despite she had no idea where her destination would take her._

_It ended up being the heart of the forest where she made out a sizeable village with a grand white oak tree of which she picked a pink flower with a long stem from the base of the tree and she ran off with it, not looking back, she did not question her actions as the flower was beautiful and she felt the need to have it. _

_She ran in-between the trees and dodged low hanging branches when she heard a horse's neigh, she stopped dead in her tracks, almost afraid that she was going to be caught by a hunter, her heart was beating faster than she could anticipate and her ears felt like they were attached to her chest as she felt each pulse loudly._

_But all of that worry disappeared the moment she saw a boy, slightly taller than she with dirty blonde curls with a few splotches of mud here and there, trying to control the horse but the horse clearly had a mind of its own which the girl couldn't help but giggle at the sight._

_It was preposterous; the horse was so big in comparison to the two of them. _

_The boy heard her giggles and turned his full attention on her, glaring at her, his father was going to kill him if he didn't get that horse back to the stables._

_It was a no joking matter._

_All he wanted was for his father to love him, but it seemed that no matter how hard he tried, he was always the one that got punished the most severely for his actions. _

_The boy did not know at the time but his facial expression changed quite rapidly as he tried to re-arrange his thoughts, from annoyed and frustrated to sad and lonely and the little girl ran to him at once, determined to bring even a small amount of happiness in his life._

_The wind blew in her dark chestnut hair as she stopped in front of him, pausing, she did not know what to say and clearly it was not one of her most brightest idea's so she said nothing and simply handed him the flower that she had picked earlier at the base of the whit e oak tree and he accepted the trinket, holding it in his hand with admiration, this was the kindest gesture he'd had for months._

_But when their hands touched between the passing of the flower, both children felt the spark of electricity of which they did not know then, but it was just the beginning of the binding that would take place._

_She looked at his face and even at such a young age, she felt remorse for this boy that she had never met before and she would do almost anything just to see him smile at her._

_"My name's Charly." She introduced herself with a small curtsey, her father had been giving her small and light teachings to her as well as her own mother on how to be a lady but for the moment, she was still allowed the freedom to run wild at will._

_"My name's Nik." The boy said back to her, granting Charly's wish, a small smile graced his lips _

"But their love was so strong that they were bounded for all eternity." Elijah told her, completing the prophecy.

Deep in thought, Elena did not know what to say. This was not even close to the answers that she intended on receiving but it was definitely giving her a slight insight to the original family's past and that was something that she could not give up so easily.

"If she is to be reborn for all eternity, how is it that no-one has heard of her before-hand?" Elena asked quickly

"Because she has not been re-born since Niklaus was turned into a vampire, more than a thousand years ago." Elijah answered sadly, his voice breaking in the second section of this statement, it need not matter the amount of time that had passed, and he would always care for her, even if his feelings would never be returned.

Elena's mouth dropped as her mind caught up to speed, "It's not just a story, and this is your history. You know something, Elijah. You need to tell me, Klaus has had a hold over all of our lives for more than a thousand years and that will all change if we can kill him. You have to tell me." Elena demanded

"There was a girl named Charlotte and she was an exquisite beauty, every boy of age wanted to be her suitor, but none loved her more than Niklaus." Said Elijah roughly, this was not an easy topic to bring up.

"What happened?"

"It all began when my brother and I were playing as children; we both had an obsession with swords, regardless of the fact that the ones we played with were wooden. We both did not wield a blade until much later in life." Said Elijah, it was one of his most favourite pastimes with his brother, when they would play in the meadows and there were no consequences in life.

_"You can't beat me, Nik!" laughed Elijah as he swung his wooden sword at his brother's waist, the two swords connected several times creating loud clunk noises. _

_"Can too!" shouted Niklaus in response as he swung his own sword high in the air, showing off his skills proudly._

_"Can not!" teased Elijah _

_"Can too." Said Nik as he hit his brother playful in the arm with his fist, the two brothers's laughed at the blazing hot sun went down._

"It was almost as if history began to repeat itself, which we later found out that it was only the beginning." Said Elijah more to himself rather than Elena's benefit

_"Who is this?" asked the chief of the village, pointedly at Niklaus, both Niklaus and Elijah were still both geared up in their protective gear, they would act as if they were hunter's themselves in their pursuits that adults called childish games, they however believed that they were following in their father's footsteps. _

_"Niklaus." Esther answered introducing one of her many sons_

_"I have a son about your age." Said the chief, his mother has died and I am slowly but surely on my way to passing, "I ask that you will care for him as your own."_

_"Elijah." Esther called forth her next son to bring forth a pail of water and some blankets_

_"We are his family now." Said Esther very clearly and that was the day that they had gained a brother that that they would call their own._

Elijah snapped out of that memory quickly, tearing his eye gaze away from Elena, he had not felt like this in over a thousand years and to say it was overwhelming was the least of his concerns, for it was not just bringing up memories of her but it was also bringing up several other memories that he was not sure about whether or not he wanted to bring it all up to the surface but it was too late to turn back now.

"Please, tell me more." Elena pleaded, placing her hand on his forearm, the gesture threw him back into another memory and he did not realize that he was saying every word aloud.

_The sound of crashing blades could be heard as Niklaus and Elijah fought playfully, Henrik and Rebekah stood by the sidelines chuckling to themselves, both the newly grown men had become of age and were practising their skills on each other, the swing of swords up high above their heads as Niklaus struck for the killer move whilst Elijah held his sword up high still, Niklaus sliced open the belt along his brother's waist and it fell to the ground with a loud thud, all of the siblings laughed together as this was only a little bit of fun before the new family arrived in the village._

_But they heard the approaching footsteps of a newcomer and Elijah and Niklaus turned around to see a young woman with flowing ringlets of dark brown hair, fanning out behind her with the wind and her chocolate eyes still had the same amount of mischievousness as well as kindness._

_Niklaus did not know what to do so he just stood there whilst Henrik was the first brave one to go up to her._

_"My name's Henrik, Miss, it's a pleasure to meet you." He introduced himself as he placed a chaste kiss on her hand; she curtsied in response, bowing her head slightly as Elijah stood up first_

_"I'm Elijah, a pleasure to make your acquaintance." Said Elijah as he came out of the daze he was in and repeated his brother's actions._

_The newcomer's eyes lingered on Niklaus for a moment with a sense of familiarity before Rebekah stepped forward and introduced herself, informing her to ignore her brother's mild attempts at flirting._

_Lucky last was Niklaus' introduction which was cut short anyhow, as they had both interrupted each other._

_"Charly?" _

_"Nik?"_

_They both said at the same time and in a moment of embarrassment, they both looked away from each other, turning their heads away but they both snuck a quick glance at each other... At the same time again which, this time a blush rose came upon Charly's cheeks, earning a smirk from Nik._

_"Charlotte Petrova." Charly told everyone her full name_

_"Niklaus Mikaelson." Said Nik as he lifted her un-kissed hand and placed a gentle kiss there, letting his lips linger there for a moment before gently releasing her hand._

_"It is good to see you again." She smiled warmly_

_His facial expression changed to one of pain before he stormed off without another glance which for some reason, Charlotte felt a physical lull that told her to go after him, she instantly felt bad, she had not meant to hurt him. _

_"I apologise, I shall talk sense into my brother." Rebekah said to Charlotte but it did not make her feel any better, "Stay and watch, Henrik." She said to Elijah as she raced after her other brother that had stormed away._

_"I saw the girl and how you were with her." Said Rebekah as soon as she had caught up with him and they were out of hearing range from Elijah and Henrik, but most importantly, Charlotte. _

_"I have met her once before in my life." Admitted Niklaus and Rebekah nodded, she had guessed that much, they clearly knew each other but she would let him vent out what he needed nevertheless. _

_"And she was a child." He said as if it was the most wondrous thing, it was either that or he was having one of his, 'Why didn't I see it before!' moments_

_"She looked worried about you." Rebekah commented lightly_

_"You don't understand." He said on mutual grounding but she said nothing in return_

_"It's her. The one that gave me the flower all those years ago was Charlotte." He told her calmly_

_"No, it can't be." Said Rebekah worried herself now_

"Why was she worried? I don't understand." Elena asked curious

"Because that was the day that fate sealed itself and the day that all loop-holes vanished. They were bound together for all eternity." He explained distastefully

"Why do I get the feeling that you weren't overly happy about that?" Elena asked quietly

"Because it was also the day that I lost all chances of taking her for my own." He answered regretfully which only gave Elena more questions, than answers.

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><p><strong>AN: Come on and make someone's day a little brighter with happiness and review? :) xx<strong>


	3. Chapter Two

**AN: I'd just like to say, thank-you so much for all the feedback that I have recieved and I hope you enjoy the next part of this story. Any questions, please just let me know... A common one that I have had is... Is Charlotte and Tatia the same person...? The answer is YES! But obviously for the sake of this story, I have named her Charlotte as I prefer that waaaaaaaay over Tatia. Uhm... I think that's all. **

**Without further ado... Read on...**

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><p>Elena's phone ringtone interrupted the awkward tension that she felt towards Elijah now, she answered the phone instantaneously.<p>

"That would be Damon checking up on you." Elijah teased her

It was Damon; rolling her eyes at his antics, he was purely checking up on her.

Seriously, it wasn't like she was twelve. She could take care of herself, but clearly he didn't think so.

"I'm fine, Damon." She said into the phone annoyed

"Just wanted to see how things were going with Elijah, you know that we can't trust him one hundred percent, not after last time..." she heard through the phone and it was undoubtedly stupid as he would have know that Elijah had heard every word which in itself was quite questionable.

"Okay, Damon." Said Elena, not really caring as she hung up the phone, after all, she was a big girl and could make her own decisions.

"So what happened afterwards? Clearly, they must've fallen in love." Asked Elena bluntly

This is turn, made Elijah chuckle.

"Oh no, to everyone, including Charlotte, it appeared that he hated her. He would deliberately ignore and avoid her at all costs."

There were some good memories of the past, Elijah acknowledged that. There were some not-so-great one too but the past, and previous experiences defined him to great lengths as a person.

"Why?" she asked, this made no sense at all. If he was already in love with her then why would he refuse to acknowledge it? She thought to herself

"There was a prophecy about this curse already told, before it had been re-written. Niklaus knew of this and suspected that he was cursed with Charlotte and he was right." He explained, trying to make sense for her

"Why didn't he just give in then? He already knew that he was going to fall in love with her, so what was the problem?" she asked

"Because Niklaus does not love or do anything by halves, he does it with his full being. He knew that if he had fallen more in love with her than he already was, that he may not be able to handle losing her." Elijah told her

"How did Charlotte take the reje-ction?" asked Elena quietly

_"Good day, Elijah," Said Charlotte, greeting each individual person upon her arrival, saving Niklaus for last, "Rebekah," turning her head in the direction of whom she had been hoping to see for the past few weeks, "Niklaus." She bowed her head_

_He looked at her for a moment before nodding to his brother and walking in the opposite direction, away from his siblings, and her._

_At this Charlotte sighed, crossing her folded arms in front of her, her expression dropped._

_"He really hates me, doesn't he?" she said, not trying to show the sadness that was overcoming her_

_"Do not worry, Charlotte, Niklaus simply has some things that need to be taken care of. He doesn't hate you." Elijah tried to comfort her but to no avail, she would not hear it._

_"Good day." Charlotte excused herself _

"Not good, that was the common reaction that she had and after a few weeks of this, she fell into a deep depression which in the end caused Niklaus to rush to her side." Elijah finished

_"Charlotte!" yelled her mother as she saw her thinning daughter fall in the main street of the village, running to her as fast as her legs would carry her, on-lookers also ran to the un-ravelling scene._

_"Mother?" Charlotte asked weakly, her head was spinning and she was slowly losing control of her body, she was getting weaker rapidly._

_Niklaus was strolling through the town when he heard the slight commotion, this of course caught his attention when he head Charlotte's name, acting on instinct, he ran as fast as he could to the two women lying on the ground, one conscious, the other was not._

_"What happened?" he asked out of breath_

_"Niklaus, you need to help her." Charlotte's mother begged him_

_"Charlotte," he asked as he reached out to her, placing her in his arms, "What have I done to you?"_

_Picking her up with ease, her mother followed them not far behind._

"What happened to her?" Elena held her breath, despite the fact that this was in the past and practically in ancient history, it still gave her a sense of thrill that was coursing through her veins.

"She did not awaken from her weakened state for a week, everyday, he would visit her." Elijah filled in the gaps.

_"How is she doing today?" Niklaus asked as he brought a basket of vegetables and other food items into the home of the Petrova's._

_Charlotte's father was away on a hunting trip with Mikael, his own father, this was something that put ease through Niklaus. _

_"She has regained some strength but she is still very weak, your presence, I believe, will help her." Charlotte's mother explained to him, she was becoming increasingly worried about her daughter but she was beginning to have her own suspicions that he was the one that would fulfil the prophecy. _

_"May I see her?" he asked gently, Charlotte's mother nodded and ushered him into a room where Charlotte lay._

"She woke that day." Coughed Elijah, not wanting to relive that memory, "They became inseparable after that." He added as an afterthought, the pain of his own emotions flooding through too quickly before he could stop them.

"The curse bound itself quickly then?" Elena commented

"Too quickly." He agreed with her

_Charlotte's hand tightened around Niklaus' left bicep as they walked through the main village, taking a lovely afternoon stroll before dinner. _

_"You know, I thought that you hated me." She admitted to him as she stepped subconsciously closer to him, as if she was afraid to lose him. _

_"I could never hate you, Char." He promised her as he took in her mesmerising eyes. _

_"Promise me, Nik?" she silently pleaded, her expression sad as her hair whipped in the wind behind her_

_"Always and forever." He answered_

"I thought that was something Rebekah pledged to Klaus." Said Elena confused, that didn't sound right.

"Yes and no. Rebekah more or less 'borrowed' it, a way of taunting Klaus." Answered Elijah

Original business was really starting to confuse Elena but she had to know, if there was a way that they could kill Klaus, she had to know.

"Why? Didn't Rebekah and Charlotte get along?" asked Elena

"On the contrary, Elena." Said a new female voice, Elena turned around at once in shock, there was Rebekah, Elena didn't want to know how long that she had been standing there. "She was my best friend, she was like my sister."

"What?" was the only word that slipped out of Elena's mouth before she could even think about it and take it back.

_"Destiny is not easy to run from, it will always chase you down, one way or another." Said Rebekah wisely to her best friend, "Besides, at least we'll be sisters." She added_

_"Look on the bright side, would you? Charlotte, you love him, he loves you, it's only natural that the pair of you marry." Rebekah was practically humming, a smile on her lips_

_"Klaus?" Charlotte asked confused_

_"See!" Rebekah teased, "Making more pet names for your future husband." _

_Charlotte shook her head, "Only you, Rebekah, would come up with that."_

_"Come on," Rebekah tried reasoning, "Think about it, I could help you, you know."_

_"You be best to hold your tongue." Charlotte said sternly, trying her best to intimidate Niklaus, this only caused Rebekah and herself to laugh. _

"Don't tell me that you're still moping about her, Elijah." Rebekah smirked

"She is dead." He said bluntly causing Elena to look back and forth between the siblings

"I thought you were on team Klaus." The doppelganger spoke up

"In the end, blood is only so thick." Shrugged the blonde, "The last time that Charlotte was alive, he brutally murdered her in cold blood, she hasn't been reincarnated since this. The Niklaus that you know is like an alter ego of his old self. He was never like this."

Rebekah was still very bitter about the situation; after all, Klaus had made her watch the entire thing before he stabbed her in the chest with a dagger dipped in the ash of white oak.

"There was a time that I would have done anything for Klaus." Admitted Elijah, he loved his brother but not this new person that he had become over time.

"That's changed, now he must die." Rebekah finished, she could not and would not forgive him for what he did, no matter how much she loved him. It would never be enough.

This left Elena's head reeling, just what had she gotten herself into?

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><p><strong>AN: So did that answer any questions for you? Or... Did it give you even more? LOL - You guys know the drill. I love feedback :) Review? xx<strong>


	4. Chapter Three

**AN: Hello! I know it's been ages but everyone just so you are all aware if you have just read the past few chapters, this one is VERY different to the others. There is no flashbacks, regardless of how Charlotte/Niklaus based this will be, I figured that there should be a lot more of an actual storyline to go along with it. There will be quite a lot of Season 3 spoilers as that is the timeline that I'm going to be using for this for I do hope you like it. At this point, the fourth coffin has not been opened however, Elijah AND Rebekah have been un-daggered. This will make more sense as the story progresses butt obviously this is highly AU (Alternate Universe) to the actual show so some things have had to change to fit in with this particular story. It has been a little while since I have written anything so I am entirely 'in the zone' as of yet but hopefully that last bit of writers block is gone. **

**Please let me know what your thoughts are as I love to hear everybody's opinion :) **

**And on with the story...**

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><p>Elena opened the door and let herself in to the Salvatore boarding house, closing it swiftly behind her with a click. Her head was still spinning from all of the information that she had gained; she would have to tell Damon as soon as possible. Speaking of which, she thought, where was Damon?<p>

"Damon?" she called as she threw her handbag on a nearby table

In an instant, he was standing behind her.

"Boo." He said loudly, causing Elena to jump, a hand flying to her chest.

"Damon! You scared me." She said

"How'd it go with Elijah and Malibu Barbie?" he asked, a small smirk appearing on his lips

"You'll never believe what I found out." Said Elena as she began retelling the events of what she had learned over the past few hours.

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><p>"Do you think she bought it?" asked Rebekah as she sat down on the couch in the living room<p>

"We won't know until the opportune moment presents itself." Replied Elijah bored, their plan had been set in motion.

This was something new at least.

"Well they'd all be fools to think that we'd join their little team. This is family business and only we will sort it out." Said Rebekah in a snarky tone

"What's all this talk about family business needing taken care of?" said a new voice that had just walked into the room

"Hello brother." Greeted Elijah as he too sat down

"Nik." Smiled Rebekah warmly

"Well?" Klaus asked, leaving the question hanging about in the air

"It seems to appear that the Salvatore brother's and your favourite doppelganger, Elena and trying to kill you again." Commented Elijah

Without letting Klaus voice his own opinion on the matter, Rebekah butted in straight away, "I honestly don't understand what anybody sees' in her, especially you Nik, Charlotte carried much more grace, poise and sense. How could –"

"Enough!" Klaus' voice thundered through the house before he stormed out, slamming the door open and off the hinges as he left, not once looking back.

"I understand how you feel, Rebekah." Elijah muttered quietly, looking down at the floor

"He killed her, Elijah." Snapped Rebekah as she stood up abruptly, Elijah stood up too.

"I know." He replied

"It's not fair, Eli!" she snapped, feeling hyped up on hormones

"It has been one thousand years." He cut her off with his out of the blue exclamation

"That means nothing to me!" she argued throwing her hands up as if he was going to back down from seeing her frustrated

"You need to focus." Elijah said sternly

"She was my best friend!" Rebekah defended her own honour

"She is dead!" he yelled at her, "And you need to get a grip of yourself!"

He ran out of the room at supernatural speed and his younger sibling highly doubted that he was within a 5km radius of her, so thus leaving Rebekah alone whom had now began sobbing as she slowly descended to the floor weeping and reliving the death over and over again, that was the last time that she had seen her.

The only person that had ever truly understood her.

* * *

><p>"Morning." Said Elena as she walked through the kitchen to see Alaric rummaging through the cupboards<p>

"I thought we had aspirin." He muttered to himself, his head throbbing from the night before

Elena turned her head mid-step at his voice and opened the fridge, "Yeah, in the vitamins." She said

He closed the cupboard he was at and walked to the opposite side of the room and opened the door.

She grabbed the jug of water she was after and headed to the sink as she noticed a half empty bottle and a half full glass of amber coloured liquid as she heard Rick open the aspirin.

"You're hung-over." She commented with a slight smirk forming on her lips, she was beginning to get a fair idea of just what he had been up to

"Yeah, sorry about that, I had a weird night." He said shrugging

"I told you that you don't have to feel guilty about inviting Meredith over here." Elena tried to reinforce, after all, she did end up spending most of her time at the boarding house anyway or with Caroline as of late and Bonnie.

"I know and I thank you for that but I do feel a little guilty for whisky downing her till two am." He replied

"Oh no you didn't." She pretended to scold him

"Oh yes I did." He admitted

"Oh, was she cool about it?" she tried to sound interested but was attempting not to laugh

"As soon as these aspirin kick in and I remember the conversation, I'll let you know." He promised jokingly

She chuckled at his tactics just as the doorbell rang.

That was kind of odd, they both thought, it was barely seven thirty in the morning.

They both walked to the door, Elena walked outside first.

"Sheriff Forbes. Hi." Said Elena as Alaric walked on to the porch, this couldn't be good news. "Is everything okay?" asked Elena

"This is an unconventional conversation that we're about to have, so I hope you'll protect me on it." Said the Sheriff

"Of course." Said Rick as Elena nodded her head

"I assume you both heard that our medical examiner was murdered the night of the wicker bridge fundraiser?" she asked

"Yeah." Confirmed Rick, "Brian Walters, why?"

"We're investigating." She said and held up a clear plastic bag labelled 'Evidence', "Someone drove this stake through his heart." The object in question still had blood on it which made Elena feel a little queasy.

Alaric had a look at it in closer detail and it only confirmed what the Sheriff had been thinking.

"It's one of ours." Said Rick in confusion, "I mean this is one of the sets from your parents lake house."

"That's why I'm here, I haven't told anyone but forensics ran it for prints and found only one clean set." She said.

Elena looked at the Sheriff not sure what she was getting at, "Yours." Said Sheriff Forbes

"What?" Elena asked surprised

The Sheriff nodded.

* * *

><p>Meredith Fell gulped as she was backed into the wall; there was no escape from a ruthless vampire... Especially an angry one, she added as an afterthought.<p>

"Did you do the job?"Demanded the angry female vampire, her raven hair cascading down her back in waves, the anger was practically radiating off of her, of what Meredith could only imagine was a lot of reserved rage built up over the years.

"Yes." Meredith confirmed and the vampire took a step back, letting Meredith have her own breathing and personal space back but it was little consolation, she was still on the edge.

"Good." The vampire said, this relaxed Meredith slightly, she seemed to be genuinely impressed and it seemed to ease the other woman's anger which was good enough for now.

Silence followed for the next few moments, before the vampire seemed to remember something.

"Where's the stake?"

The question hung in the air like something breakable which only increased Meredith's nerves once more.

"I left it in the body."

The other woman seemed to think this over before shrugging.

"No matter."

The vampire then turned and looked Meredith dead in the eye.

Cobalt blue meeting chocolate brown, the pupils enlarging themselves on the vampire.

The only tell-tale signs of...

Compulsion.

"You will shoot Alaric Saltzman with a gun."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So what did you think? I know it's only a short one but I felt this was necessary to kind of catch everyone up on where the 'outside world' of Mystic Falls was currently at. Let me know what you thought in a lovely review! :)<strong>

**Also... For those of you whom are like "WHO THE F# %! IS CHARLOTTE?" She is Tatia, the original Petrova - so hopefully that answers some questions as I get asked that a lot. Lol xx**


	5. Chapter Four

**AN: Hello everyone, so this chapter is very Original Family based with Klaus, Rebekah and Elijah with the Salvatore's, and very little Elena and other characters so don't fret as they will all be returning in the next chapter, I just really wanted to get the majority of the dinner scene in the one chapter and get in a quicke flashback with Rebekah. Updates should be slightly more regular, this one is also a little bit longer in length as well. LOL**

**Oh and really quickly as well, a big fat massive thank-you to all the fav's, alerts and review's, they are honestly amazing and they do inspire me to write/type a lot faster... *hint hint* ;)**

**And now we... Enjoy and read on! x**

* * *

><p>"Stefan's love of Elena seems to cloud his judgement, does it not?" Elijah asked his brother simply, not knowing how to bring the topic of love up with his brother, it was certainly a difficult task.<p>

"Love is a vampire's greatest weakness, and we are not weak, Elijah. We do not feel, and we do not care." Niklaus said firmly

Elijah lifted his head with a bit of hope, as he spoke up.

"We did once."

Sighing to himself, Niklaus chose to ignore the effects of the comment that it truly had on him.

"Too many lifetimes ago to matter now." He shrugged, ignoring the stabbing pain in his chest, placing a re-assuring hand on his brother's shoulder.

"And if she came back?" Elijah asked, full well knowing that this would get a reaction out of him.

His brother froze, not knowing what to say.

"It has been over a thousand years, has it not?" Nik retorted, instead of giving the answer that Elijah as after, if Charlotte even knew of half of what he was doing, and then of course she would probably kill him herself. He didn't want to face her because he knew that she would be furious at him, for a number of things, including the last time they saw each other where he murdered her, he was using her as leverage but had been sure that he had vampire blood in her system, he even made her drink some of his own, only to later realise that she hadn't swallowed a drop, thus removing his fail-safe when he killed her and she didn't wake up.

"Indeed." Confirmed Elijah, snapping Klaus out of his thoughts going miles per hour, he said nothing in reply to Elijah, he didn't know how to but he didn't want to seem weak either, a difficult temperament.

So Elijah continued, "We're having dinner tonight with the Salvatore's to negotiate the return of the fourth coffin. Prepare yourself wisely," changing the topic

Klaus nodded, "So be it." He was glad for the topic change.

* * *

><p>A sound of a knock at the door and Elijah opened it, revealing Stefan and Damon standing side by side.<p>

"Niklaus, our guests have arrived." Announced Elijah, letting the two brothers enter the house, Damon waltzed in first with Stefan reluctantly following after him.

Elijah shut the front door with a small click.

"Damon," greeted Klaus, "Stefan. Elijah tells me that you seek an audience. Very bold, let's discuss the terms of our agreement like civilised men shall we?" he said as he pointed to the table on his left, set for four, a formal occasion layout of course.

There was three waitress' standing near the fireplace at the back of the room, dressed in matching outfits, yellow satin tops and black pencil skirts, all of them were holding silver trays.

Damon snuck a quick confused glance at Elijah where as Stefan rolled his eyes.

"It's better to indulge." Said Elijah as he stepped forward, walking to the table that had been set merely a few hours ago.

Klaus was smirking, the tables had turned once more and now he had the upper-hand once more.

Stefan walked forward, hands in pockets, making Klaus' eyebrows twitch up in curiosity.

"I didn't uh, come here to eat Klaus. In fact I didn't want to come here at all." Said Stefan, "But I was told that I had to, because you would here us out."

Klaus chuckled and looked down at the floor for a brief moment, this was truly amusing him to a great length.

"Well, we can sit and eat." Decided Klaus as one of the waitress' pulled out a chair for him to sit down on, "Or I can reach down your throat and pull out your insides. Choice is yours." He finished as he took a seat, his brother followed suit

Damon unconsciously swallowed; after all, there was always an unknown risk when it came to this original vampire slash werewolf.

Stefan wanted to lunge across the room and knock Klaus to the floor but he had to remind himself that he was only here to give Bonnie and her mother more time.

"What's for dinner then?" asked Stefan

* * *

><p>Rebekah had spent the rest of her day alone, by retreating herself to the old part of Mystic Falls in the woods. She knew that Elijah had planned to have the Salvatore brother's over tonight, and she wanted to have no part in it, they already had enough drama in their lives, mainly due to her brother's own will but this time she wanted to have no part in it, not tonight at least.<p>

She was furious at Niklaus for a number of reasons, all of which, he truly did deserve.

She was in a rage from what happened early this morning with Elijah; he had been incredibly brutal in their conversation.

Maybe that was why she was avoiding going back to the manor.

The day was slowly rolling into the night.

"I miss you, Charlotte." She said to the whispering wind that was starting to pick up speed around her, her blonde hair was blowing backwards out of her face.

It had been a thousand years, so the question was; where was she?

The original curse that had been set so long ago declared that she would be re-born.

So where the hell was she?

Rebekah blinked as she felt a rush of liquid begin to pool at her eyes.

Not again, she thought to herself.

But in truth, she couldn't help it.

_"You complete him, you know." Said Rebekah seriously as the pair of them had just finished a fair share of a laughing fit._

_"Niklaus does not live by any rules but his own." Responded Charlotte_

_"Oh goodness, how cryptic of you." Replied Rebekah with a smile_

_"You and I both know it's true. Love is included in that segment. Besides Rebekah, you are his sister; you should know him better than anyone. He speaks very highly of you."_

_"Father would have his head if he said otherwise."_

_"I noticed." Admitted Charlotte_

_"We are best friends, Charlotte, you know I won't breathe a word to anyone. Tell me what is wrong." Pleaded Rebekah_

_"I know that... It's just that I worry about Niklaus, I fear that he is pulling away from me." Charlotte said embarrassed, she was talking to said person's sister, this conversation was hardly conventional. _

_"What makes you say that?" questioned the blonde_

_"You mustn't repeat any of this but a few nights ago and every one since, he has been... Well... Different." Charlotte was at a loss for words, due to nervousness or embarrassment, she wasn't one hundred percent sure as of yet._

_"Define different." Pushed her best friend_

_"He's stronger than normal, angrier, I do not know how to explain it in words." Said Charlotte at last, "But I can show you." She added after Rebekah gave her a strange look_

_Charlotte looked around her, despite the fact that the spot that they had chosen was deserted, she felt self conscious. _

_Charlotte stood up from her seat in the grass and rolled her dress to the side revealing purple bruises that looked incredibly fresh._

_Rebekah gasped._

_"He did this to you!?" she exclaimed loudly as she examined the extent of the damage_

_Charlotte let go of the dress as it re-settled itself back in to place, effectively covering all evidence._

_"Oh come off it." Said Charlotte, "It's not what you think." _

_"What do you mean, not what I think? There isn't much to think about!" she pretty much shrieked_

_"Shhhh!" said Charlotte as she held a finger to her lips, looking around once more out of habit, deciding that it was safe to speak again._

_"That's the thing, he doesn't realise that he's done this." Whispered Charlotte but Rebekah wasn't having any of it_

_"I'm being serious, Rebekah, but he's getting stronger."_

_"Have you spoken to him about this?" the blonde asked quietly, this was quite the predicament _

_"Are you insane?! Of course not!" shot back Charlotte_

Rebekah snapped out of her thoughts, it was already dark now.

She looked up at the sky, glancing up she found a star that had just appeared.

She made a wish.

**_I wish that I had my best friend back._**

* * *

><p>The waitress' kept re-filling every single class, whether they wanted blood, red wine or water.<p>

"Thank you, love." Said Damon after a mouthful

Stefan's hands were clasped together, his elbows rested on the table, he was clearly ready to burst any second, not to mention

"Lost your appetite?" asked Klaus

"Eat." Ordered Damon, "I thought we agreed that we would leave the grumpy Stefan at home." He said with a smile, Stefan sat back in his chair and picked up the fork on the outside and began to eat the course that was laid out in front of him.

"That's the spirit." Encouraged Klaus, "Isn't this nice? The four of us dining together, such a treat, is this what you had in mind when you pulled the dagger out of my brother and sister?"

"Well, you know how I feel about you so I figured, the more, the merrier." Explained Damon with a few slight hints of sarcasm

"Well, Elijah and I have had our share of quarrels over the centuries, but we always make it through." Defended Klaus

"Kind of like you and Rebekah, speaking of which... Where is she? By the way." interrupted Stefan

Klaus visibly stiffened and sent a harsh glare in Stefan's direction whilst an unseen wink was passed between Elijah and Damon.

"Last time I checked, she was still daggered because you were afraid to face her. But apparently she's running around plotting her revenge against you, she's not the type of woman to cross." Continued Stefan, sending minor hints to Elijah that Klaus was hiding something.

"Are you referring to the fact that Rebekah knows that I killed our mother?" inquired Klaus, "I've already come clean to Elijah."

"Hey Stef, remember when you killed dad?" pitched in Damon as he swirled around his wine in his glass. "You might want to dial down the judgment until dessert." Damon advised his brother, after all, this was going to be one long dinner party, and Bonnie would need all the time that they could give her.

"We're here to make a deal Damon." Pointed out Stefan, it was quite clear that he just wanted to get it all over and done with, "There's no need to kiss his ass for seven courses."

"I'm just saying that we've got a long evening ahead of us, pace yourself." Smiled Damon

* * *

><p>"Stefan, where is the lovely Elena tonight?" Elijah asked, trying to make some less awkward conversation<p>

"I dunno, why don't you ask Damon?" shot back Stefan, leaving a very confused Elijah sitting in his seat and his brother laughed beside him.

"I'm sorry, you missed so much," Said Klaus when he recovered, "Let's just say, trouble in paradise."

"Another word about Elena and this dinner is over." Threatened Stefan, he was more than ready to walk out the door.

"You know what, it's probably best to keep Elena, in the do not discuss pile." Added Damon, although to be quite fair, that pile was just getting larger and larger

Klaus held a finger to his lips, a smile very evident on his face though.

"You're probably right." Said Stefan

"Yeah." Said Klaus as he took another bite, "It's just the allure of the Petrova doppelganger is still so strong. What do you say brother? Shall we tell them about Charlotte?"

"Now why should we? Discuss matters long since resolved." Said Elijah, secretly hoping that this topic would also make its way into the do not discuss pile

"Oh, given their shared affections for both Elena and Katerina, I think our guests might be curious to learn about the originator of the Petrova line." Shrugged Klaus, this did grasp Stefan's attention

"Well, we're not going anywhere, Elijah, so please do tell." Persuaded Damon

"When our family first settled here, there was a girl named Charlotte, she was an exquisite beauty, every boy of age desired to be her suitor, even though she had rumoured to have a child by another man, which had been given away, but none loved her more than Niklaus." Started Elijah

"Oh, I'd say there was one that loved her at least as much." Said Klaus resentfully, he did not like to share at all

"Wait a minute." Said Stefan as he was wrapping his head around this, "So you both loved the same girl?" This was all news to him as Damon did not explain Elena's findings to him yet because they had both wanted to be sure that it was all true before bringing Stefan into another plan and to be quite honest it was intriguing him, a lot.

"For a time, Niklaus and I grew estranged; harsh words were traded, we even came to blows, didn't we? My brother." Finished Elijah

"But in the end we came to recognise the true sacred bond of family." Said Klaus smugly

"Family above all." Recited Elijah

"Family above all." Repeated Klaus as he shared a private toast with his brother

The Salvatore brothers both exchanged worried glances; they were getting no-where, if anything they were taking two steps backwards.

* * *

><p>"I've got to call Damon and tell him that we're getting closer." Exclaimed Bonnie, this was the best news and furthest that they had come in terms of getting the coffin open.<p>

Abby nodded and Bonnie left the cave; she needed to get into reception range.

Abby was alone for a moment, the candles flickering a golden glow against the harsh cold walls of the cave when the coffin's airlock seemed to open magically, making Abby jump and gasp in fright.

She walked closer to the coffin; perhaps her ears had been deceiving her. She held out a hand the coffin had opened completely on its own accord making Abby gasp once more, the flames from all the candles expanded into the air, Abby's eyes were as wide as saucers.

* * *

><p>The waitress' filled the glasses of wine again as Damon quickly checked his phone, he had just received a text message from Bonnie.<p>

**Bonnie: Getting Closer.  
>Need more time. <strong>

"So why don't we move this evening along and discuss the terms of this proposal." Proposed Elijah

Damon slipped his phone back in his pocket.

"Well, it's very simple, Klaus gets his coffin back and in exchange, he and the original extended family leave Mystic Falls forever. Meaning, me, Stefan, and Elena, all live happily ever after. No grudges." Explained Damon

"The deal sounds fair, brother." Agreed Elijah

"I don't think you understand, Elena's doppelganger blood ensures that I will always have more hybrids to fight those that oppose me, I will never leave her behind." Reasoned Klaus

"But say I do leave her here," Klaus said, he stood up and walked to the front of the fireplace, turning around to face his dinner party, equipped with a glass of wine in one hand, "With your protection. What then? How long before one of you turns her into a vampire? Or worse, how long before she dies, caught in the middle of your feuding. You see, each one of you truly believes that you're the one that can protect her. Gentleman, that is simply an illusion. The worst thing for Elena Gilbert is the two of you. "

Awkward silence followed as the entirety of the guests sat, just pondering at Klaus' ultimatum speech.

"I'm gonna get some air." Mumbled Damon as he got up and left the room

"I could do with some myself." Said Elijah as he too got up from his seat, only leaving Klaus and Stefan in the same room together

"All this talk has made me thirsty. Care to join me in a little after dinner drink?" smirked Klaus as he bit into one of the waitress'.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: What did you think? Let me know in a review! Xx<strong>


	6. Chapter Five

**AN: Sorry no lovely flashbacks in this chapter, we will be having loads in the next one so keep an eye out, this is a bit of a fast paced chapter so I hope you like it with a bit of an anticipated surprise at the end.**

**Enjoy! xx**

* * *

><p><strong>Meanwhile (In the last chapter whilst Damon and Stefan were eating dinner with Elijah and Klaus)<strong>

Elena didn't know what to do; her thoughts were a complete and total mess.

Why was it that everything seemed to just happen at once?

Elijah, and Rebekah's sudden deep and meaningful conversation about their past and a prophecy that could maybe help in the end, kill Klaus.

This at least was some good news.

Then again, Mystic Falls had some sort of mystery killer on the loose that seemed to just be attacking the Founding Families which was never good and it just so happened that the only suspect so far was herself but at least Sheriff Forbes knew that Elena was innocent, again, a bit of a plus.

But then there was Caroline's dad, whom had vampire blood in his system and was stabbed to death, which means now he was in the middle of the transition to becoming a vampire, and to complete the transition, he would need to drink blood or else he'll die.

Bill Forbes, however, refused to drink any blood, meaning that in a few hours he would die.

If anyone knew what is like to lose family, it was Elena and to be brutally honest, she had no idea how to comfort her friend, Caroline, purely because, he was choosing death and Caroline was refusing to accept it.

Which of course, was fair enough but Elena also understood where Caroline's dad was coming from, he held his beliefs and morals very highly and he would rather die than spit in the face of them, despite his daughter's desperate pleas.

Elena vowed that she would head over there again soon; she just wanted to make sure that Caroline has some quality time with her dad before he did pass away.

And so, she headed home, to focus on another one of their problems.

Opening the door to the house, she walked through the corridor and into the kitchen and lounge room where she saw weapons everywhere and Alaric was cleaning a gun before placing it down on a nearby table.

Elena placed her bag on the floor.

"What are you doing?" she asked

"Taking inventory?" Replied Rick as he waved his arms around the space they were in, indicating the contents that was covering a multiple of surfaces

She nodded.

"Did you bring it?" he asked gruffly

"You mean, did I steal evidence from a crime scene?" she said back sarcastically, reaching into her bag and pulling out a knife wrapped in white cloth

"Yes." She said reluctantly as she handed the knife to him over the dining table, he reached and took it from her

He opened the cloth to reveal the knife, there was still blood covering it and some had transferred to the cloth.

"You're right." He admitted, "It's a match, this one is from a cross-space in the foyer. Which means Meredith knew where it was."

"That doesn't mean that she stole it." Elena defended her

Rick sighed and turned around, "This is from the loft." He said as he pointed to the contents in the kitchen

He picked up a wooden stake to emphasis his point, "These are from duffel in Damon's car."

"Identical to the one that killed Brian Walters." Acknowledged Elena

"Damon's car was at the Wickery Bridge fundraiser." He said, "So was Meredith and that was the night that her ex-boyfriend, the medical examiner was killed. The one that called her psycho." He added, pointing out all the evidence

"Meredith was trying to save Bill Forbes, why would she turn around and try to kill him?" Elena asked, it didn't make sense

"I don't know what to think either, you know, but we'd be idiot's to ignore all these facts." Stated Alaric

And to be fair, even Elena had to give him credit for that

"So what should we do?" she asked

"Well..." he trailed off, picking up the knife that Elena had stolen, "Get this to the police, and you should probably be with Caroline."

Elena sighed, why was it that this was such a difficult situation?

"I'm sorry, Rick." She apologised, he said nothing so she continued, "Please be careful."

* * *

><p>Elena sat on the front porch of the Forbes' residence with Caroline.<p>

"Did you hear back from Tyler yet?" Elena asked her friend

"No." Caroline said sadly, "And I've left messages for him everywhere."

Silence filled the air and Caroline decided to change the subject.

"So does Alaric really think that Doctor Fell did it?"

Inhaling, Elena answered, "He doesn't know what to think."

"What about you?" asked the blonde

Elena smiled briefly, "I wish the girl that Alaric liked wasn't in the middle of all this. He deserves to be happy but yeah, she looks guilty, that's why I told your mum."

Caroline nodded.

"My mum's in there sitting with my dad." Chuckled Caroline, "I don't think they've been in the same room this long since I was ten years old."

Elena smiled again at her friend.

Silence followed once more before Caroline's head went into overdrive.

"Is there any chance that Tyler did it?" she asked seriously

Elena looked at her friend strangely, "What?"

"If Klaus was trying to mess with you, and he's sired to Klaus, and he, I mean, he does everything that he's told-" Caroline began to rant

"No." Elena cut her friend off, "No." She shook her head

"I don't think Tyler did it." Elena finished lamely

Caroline was on the verge of tears.

"Well I can't just let my father die. You know what, I'm gonna force him to feed."

This had to be the hardest thing that Elena had to say to her friend, but it had to be said.

"He doesn't want to, Caroline. The only thing your dad has is his choice."

Tears began to fall as she shook her head.

"I hated him so much!" she admitted, "For what he did to me, so much. Now, all I want to do is just save his life."

"Well, of course you want to save him. He's your dad!" Elena pointed out

"What was the hardest part for you?" the vampire asked, "When you lost your dad."

"Realising all the things that he wouldn't be there for." Elena answered, "The things that you just need your dad for, you know?"

Caroline nodded.

This was hard for both of them so Elena embraced her friend in a hug, trying to comfort her when someone walked up from the sidewalk.

Matt.

"Hey." He greeted

"Hey." Said Caroline as she jumped up to standing and hugged Matt, crying.

* * *

><p>"Thanks for walking me home." Said Elena as she and Matt walked to the front of her house<p>

"You doing okay?" he asked, "This has to bring up a lot for you."

She was touched that he remembered what she went through.

"We all lost a lot." Elena choked out

"It's this town." Concluded Matt, "It's messed up, man. None of us should have to live this way."

And he was right.

She nodded as she opened the front door, he followed her closely behind to make sure that everything really was okay with her, she seemed off.

Elena hit the light switch but no lights came on, how bizarre

"That's weird." She commented as she tried a couple more times but no luck, shrugging, this really was a minor issue in comparison to everything else going on.

"Electricity must be out." Suggested Matt as he closed the door

Elena walked into the kitchen to grab some torches; at least Matt was here so he could help her fix the problem.

She opened a cupboard above the breakfast counter and pulled out two.

"Here." She said as she passed him a torch

Matt turned his on and Elena followed suit.

"I think I have some candles over there." She said improvising as she walked to the kitchen knives, only to see a pool of blood on the floor and scattered blood over the counter.

"Oh my God!" freaked Elena

"What the hell!?" said Matt

They moved the torches around the room so that they could get a clear view to see if there was any other blood.

There was a handprint on the door so they both grabbed kitchen knives, following the trail of blood that seemed to lead upstairs.

They kept going until they made it to the top and found Alaric passed out with a knife nearby and an obvious gunshot wound that was still oozing out blood.

Elena gasped again in a panic.

"Rick!" she said as she dropped the knife and rushed to his side

"Oh my God!" she exclaimed as she put pressure on his gunshot wound.

"I'll call 911!" said Matt straight away as he grabbed his phone and began dialling

"Rick! Look at me. Who did this to you?" asked Elena as she could feel the blood seeping through her fingertips

"I don't know." He whispered

"Oh my God – there's a lot of blood Matt!" said Elena, she was trying to not freak out and it was not going that well

"I know, I know. Elena, I know." Said Matt as he was on the phone to the ambulance service

"You have to kill me." Said Rick

"What?" asked Elena

"You have to kill me." Repeated Alaric

Elena grabbed his hand; he was wearing his protection ring.

"Wait, Matt, hang up." She ordered him so he did so, "He's right, if he dies a supernatural death, then he'll come back to life and be healed."

"Well how do you know who did this was supernatural?" Asked Matt, this was crazy!

"That's what he's saying, we don't but I'm the doppelganger which makes me supernatural." She explained, as she picked up the knife she had brought up from the kitchen

"No, Elena, this is messed up!" Matt tried to reason with her

"He's dying Matt!" she practically yelled at him, there was no time to argue about this, she would not let someone else die tonight, she just wouldn't.

She held the knife up high before stabbing him deeply.

* * *

><p>"Delicious." Murmured Klaus as he pulled away from the waitress and threw her to the floor with a thud.<p>

Stefan just watched.

"Aged to perfection." Klaus commented, wiping the dribble of blood from his chin

"Well..." started Stefan as he stood up, "I guess the only reason you agreed to this evening, Klaus is to drive a wedge between me and my brother."

"Oh no, you're doing that on your own. Because of Elena, you're going to lose your brother and you'll only have yourself to blame." Smirked Klaus

"What do you say Klaus?" asked Damon as he walked back into the room with Elijah following him closely, "Time for you to put something on the table. We've made our offer, now you counter."

"Okay." Said Klaus as he sat back down again, wiping his lips with a napkin, clearing his throat, Stefan was becoming increasingly impatient.

"I offer Elena's future happiness, you see what she need's right now is to be rid of you lot, and to fall in love with a human, maybe that nice football player, you know, the blonde one?" suggested Klaus

"Matt Donovan?" asked Damon, grimacing, "Really?"

"Yeah, why not? They'll marry, live a long fruitful life and pop out a perfect family." Tried Klaus

"And continue the Petrova bloodline, ensuring that you have a new doppelganger every couple hundred years to drain and never run out of hybrids. Right Klaus?" Stefan said as he caught on to the original's train of thought

Klaus smirked, Stefan was getting good.

"Consider it a small return for my investment in her wellbeing. See, after you hand me back the coffin, I'll ensure her safety for the rest of her natural life, you know it's what's best for her." Proposed Klaus, "So, what do you say Stefan? Do we have a deal?"

"We do." Mumbled Stefan, the pair of them walked to the front of the fireplace to shake on it, Klaus was smirking widely now and dare not to hide it, after all, he had won.

When Stefan took Klaus' hand, he let the ripper come out.

"Nice try Klaus but no deal." He said lowly

Klaus was furious at the deceit so he gripped Stefan's forearm, twisting it around and breaking it swiftly in one move. Kicking the back on his knee cap, his patella cracked, Stefan on was the ground on his knees, crying out in pain. Klaus gripped the shoulder of the broken arm and held it in the fire place making Stefan cry out more.

Damon ran to intervene but Elijah stopped him by shoving him to the wall and held him there by the throat, Damon looked at Elijah confused.

"What are you doing?" asked Damon

Stefan's hand was burning in the fire; the smell of burnt flesh filled the air.

"Stop!" shouted Damon and Elijah let go to see the damage that his sibling had inflicted.

Pulling Stefan's arm out of the fire he ordered, "Now bring me my coffin or I'll burn him alive."

"I'll get it." Glared Damon before leaving the room.

"Go with him brother, you keep him honest." Said Klaus, "And when you return, I will make good on my promise to you and I will hand over our family."

Elijah disappeared.

* * *

><p>"Go ahead and kill me. I know you'll do it when he brings the coffin." Taunted Stefan<p>

Klaus hauled him to his feet and faced him.

"You really have given up haven't you? Come on, where's the fight? Where's the ripper?" tormented Klaus

Stefan shoved him.

Damon and Elijah re-entered the room with a waitress carrying a covered tray.

"Elijah." Klaus greeted, "Why haven't you left yet?"

"Well, where is your manners brother? We forgot dessert." Said Elijah as he pulled the cover from the tray, revealing two daggers that only Klaus recognised too well

"What have you done?" demanded Klaus, the Salvatore issue forgotten

"What have you done?" counted Elijah, "You see I've learned not to trust your vulgar promises, Klaus. We're doing this on my terms now."

And all of a sudden, Kol entered the room and Niklaus panicked.

"Kol." He tried

"Long time brother." Said Kol, distracting him as Finn raced into the room and grabbed a dagger, Klaus held his hands up in minor defeat.

"Finn, don't!" Klaus tried but Finn stabbed the dagger through the palm of his hand and ripped it out.

Klaus screamed in pain and ran to the nearest exit but Rebekah stood there with another dagger and stabbed him hard in the stomach.

"Rebekah." Said Klaus unexpectedly

"This is for our mother and Charlotte." She said as she twisted the knife deeper into the flesh and pulled it out quickly.

Kol watched proudly as his baby sister inflicted pain and Klaus fell backwards and Kol caught both his arms and pinned them behind his back.

Rebekah stepped down, looking more livid than ever.

"You're free to go." Announced Elijah, since the entirety of the original family member's had seemed to forget the appearance of the Salvatore brothers, "This is family business."

Stefan and Damon left quickly, not once looking behind them.

* * *

><p>"Let's hope that big witch and little witch got that coffin open." Said Damon<p>

"Something's gotta make this night worthwhile." Commented Stefan as they continued walking through the caves

"Bonnie!" said Stefan as they both rushed over to her, she was laying unconscious on the ground, "She's still breathing."

"Mumma's still breathing, I can hear her from over here." Said Damon as he looked up to find that the coffin was open

"Coffin's open." Stated Stefan

"Well, that's not going to do us any good. Whatever was in it is gone." Said Damon frustrated

* * *

><p>"None of us would ever have to be alone again." Said Niklaus<p>

""You're right," agreed Elijah, "None of us will be alone again."

"You're staying behind." joined in Finn

"We're leaving you, Nik." Said a smug Rebekah, "Right after I kill that doppelganger wench, then you will be alone. Always and forever."

"If you run, I will hunt all of you down." Threatened Klaus

"Then you'll become everything you hate." Pointed out Elijah, "Our father."

"I'm the hybrid, I can't be killed!" Klaus screamed, "I have nothing to fear from any of you."

"You will when we have that coffin." Believed Elijah

Klaus said nothing as tears formed in his eyes.

No, he would not allow it.

The front door opened and all the originals turned to see who had interrupted.

The sound of clicking heels was the first noise that they heard and Klaus gasped in shock when the person made itself known.

"Charlotte?" whispered Rebekah as the originals parted to let her walk down the stairs to Niklaus, no one dared to say a word, she had not yet lifted her gaze to meet anyone's eyes, not yet.

She could feel Elijah's eyes on her and from what she could tell, he was probably just as shocked as Niklaus.

Niklaus looked at the floor straight away, almost willingly for her to still be lying in the coffin.

The brunette lifted her eyes, her ringlets down by her waist and she was wearing a gown that was clearly not from this decade or the one before but an old fashioned Grecian style dress.

"Look at me!" her voice was clear and bit into his skin

He lifted his eye gaze slowly, taking in every detail of her as he could, tears spilled from his eyes as he met her eye gaze.

"Do you know why I am here?" she questioned him

He did not answer her, he didn't know how to.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: And the plot thickens... Deary me... Any idea's as to what's going to happen next? Let me know what you thought as well! So don't forget to review :-) Xx<strong>


	7. Chapter Six

**AN: Hello everybody, I know. I have been totally slack but things have been ultra full on at the moment but in saying that I know that's a pretty lousy excuse but at least it's me being honest. Please see the next installment, things have picked up. I did have more in this chapter originally, I however have decided to put into the next chapter so the wait for that will be very minimal because it is already half written. Hurrah. So that is some lovely good news at least but it looks a little small in comparison to what I had originally had... Ah well. I do hope you like it, this story obviously is extremely AU (Alternate Universe) now as I'm guessing that majority of you would already know. But hey - I guess that's why they call it fanfiction right? I added a little bit of a twist but attempted for it to follow the timeline still so we shall see how it all pans out. Enjoy! As always, please let me know your thoughts, I love to hear your opinions and idea's/suggestions. Review x**

**And on with the story...**

* * *

><p>"<em>Hello brother." Taunted Elijah as he flipped over his brother whom was currently lying on the ground<em>

"_Elijah?" Niklaus gasped in surprise, what was he doing? He didn't completely understand_

"_You took her from me." Elijah growled as he plunged the sword in his grip through his brother's heart. It was him justifying his own actions._

"_No!" Charlotte screamed as she saw Elijah rise from his position with his sword and the blood pooling from Niklaus' chest. Elijah mechanically walked away ignoring the distressed cries from Charlotte._

_She ran to his body as fast as she could, Rebekah was following closely behind to see what the fuss was about._

_Charlotte threw herself forward and landed on his body, clutching him at the arms, willing him to be alive. _

_She tried spells and incantations but all she saw was his vacant eyes that were opened when he had died, haunting her. _

_She could not stop sobbing, and muttering the words from her mother that she knew all too well._

_This could not be real; she would allow it to happen. _

"_No, please. Don't leave me here." She cried_

"_No." Said Rebekah as she fell to her knees, tears falling from her eyes as the only thing she felt now was remorse. _

* * *

><p>"Do you know why I am here, Niklaus?" she asked again, this time more aggravated.<p>

It was everything that he had hoped would not happen.

She had turned against him; it could only mean one thing and it felt like his heart was being ripped from his chest already.

"You're here to kill me." He whispered as more tears shed, he lifted his eyes to meet her gaze.

"No." She sighed, how could he think that?

They had only just found each other again.

"I am here to remind you." she answered his silent question.

Before anything else could be said, another person walked into the room, the same style of clothing hugged her body.

"Mother." Said Rebekah shocked as her mother walked and stood next to Charlotte.

"Well, she's definitely going to kill me." Said Niklaus quietly but everyone in the room heard him.

"Hello, Niklaus." Her voice cut through the air sharply causing him to shiver.

There were only so many blasts from the past that a person could handle in a span of less than five minutes.

"Mother." He whispered, looking her in the eye, almost begging her forgiveness.

It had all been an accident, he hadn't meant it.

"I am here to forgive you." She said to Niklaus, turning to the rest of her family, her daughter and son's. "I want us to be a family again."

* * *

><p>"How is this possible?" he asked her in wonder as he stroked her hair from her face, they were finally alone in his bedroom.<p>

"Ayanna preserved our bodies in the same coffin. The descendants of her line set us free." Charlotte explained as she closed her eyes, revelling in the sensation that he gave her.

"You're really here." He stated

"Yes." She confirmed as her eyes fluttered open, he embraced her tightly, wanting to never let her go, inhaling the scent of her hair and feeling quite content.

"I have missed you." He acknowledged

"I'm here Nik, nothing can keep us apart again." She promised

"But the curse." He argued, not wanting to admit it but it was something that could not be left to chance anymore.

"We will break it and be together." She replied

"Always and forever?" he asked

"Always and forever." She smiled

He let go of her gently, admiring every move that she made.

God, how he had missed her dearly, to the extent that he couldn't even say out loud due to his own embarrassment.

He hadn't realised just how much he missed her until she had been right in front of him again.

It was almost taunting really, like dangling something forbidden in front of someone that the person could not have so he had removed as many thoughts of her from his mind but seeing here now, it all came rushing back and he could no longer be in any shape or form of denial.

He _loved_ her.

"I think you may need to accommodate me to the era that we are currently in." Said Charlotte

"We wouldn't have anything less for you, Char." He advised her

"I have missed you, Nik." She admitted sheepishly

"I am just so happy that you're finally here, I didn't think I would see you again." He admitted quietly

"Nothing can keep a woman from her husband for too long." She joked

"Well then, let's not make it any longer for you, love." He whispered as he pressed his lips to hers

* * *

><p>Elena sighed as she walked out of the hospital room to meet Matt in the hallway.<p>

Things just wouldn't get easier; she made a silent vow to just take things one at a time if that was even possible.

She was hoping that things would ease up a little.

"How's Mr. Saltzman?" Matt asked

"Resigned to spending the night in observation." Replied Elena, not helping but feeling that this was her own fault, "As long as I promise to change the locks in the house... So I talked to Bonnie earlier, she and her mom are fine. Have you talked to Caroline?"

"Yeah, she's holding it together considering how close she and her dad used to be." Answered Matt, "Any word of who's behind all these attacks?"

"Nope," sighed Elena, if only it was that easy.

"Sheriff Forbes said that there's no real suspects at all." Confirmed Elena

They continued to walk through the corridors and make their way out to the emergency car park area in silence when Elena struck up the conversation once more.

"How are you doing with everything? Well, I mean, you just keep getting dragged into all of this."

"Honestly, I'm kind of lucky, the only thing that I have to worry about for tomorrow is showing up for my shift at the grill." Shrugged Matt

"Thank you for everything today," thanked Elena, "Really."

"Get home safe." Said Matt sincerely before walking to his car

"Thanks." She smiled before unlocking her own car and buckling up.

Starting the car, she checked behind and nothing was there, reversing her car she had hit something as she felt the car jar forward quite forcibly, she braked and secured the car before jumping out in a panic that she had hit someone.

But as soon as she checked, there was no one there so she turned around to which someone had travelled at superhuman speed to her.

"Drive much?" said the blonde vampire

"Rebekah!" Elena freaked out, surely she was dead now.

Rebekah gripped her at the neck and backed her onto the car in one swift movement.

"Surprise." She smirked, "You drove a dagger through my back, Elena. It hurt."

Just as Rebekah was about to sink her fangs into the doppelgangers neck, she felt someone remove her, she looked up to see Elijah.

"Elijah." Rebekah announced

"Leave now." He warned as he released her from his hold.

"Playing the hero now are we?" she mocked

"Are you challenging me?" Elijah shot back

"You're pathetic." She said with a smile, looking at Elena, "Both of you."

In a small gust of wind she had disappeared.

"Well, I believe we have much catching up to do." Stated Elijah

* * *

><p>The next day, Elena was busy cleaning up the kitchen as the both Stephen and Damon sat down.<p>

"It was Esther that was sealed inside the coffin." Elena told them

"You mean the original witch?" Stefan clarified

"How is she even alive? I thought that the hybrid freak show of her son killed her a thousand years ago." Pitched in Damon

"Well, I'm guessing that she has a couple of friends in the witching community. Elijah said that she wants to live in peace with her family, including Klaus." Elena advised them

"She was supposed to be the weapon that kills Klaus." Stefan thought aloud

"Yeah, well, not anymore, at least not according to Elijah." Sighed Elena

"That coffin was the only thing stopping Klaus from tearing us all to shreds." Stefan stated

"Anyone else feeling a little used right now?" said Damon

"Look, Elijah promised me that his family wouldn't hurt any of us." Elena reasoned just as the doorbell went off causing all of them to cease conversation.

"I believe him." Said Elena before going to the door, as soon as she opened it, no one was there, her eyes averted to the ground where she saw a white envelope with her name in elegant script on the front in black.

**Elena Gilbert**

She bent down and picked it up, opening it with a slight bit of caution.

How odd.

"What is it?" Damon asked

"It's an invitation." Answered Elena with a confused expression on her face.

**Please join the  
>Mikaelson. Family<br>This evening at Seven o'Clock  
>For Dancing, Cocktails &amp; Celebration<strong>

She read it aloud to the brother's.

"Who the hell are the Mikaelson's?" asked Stefan

With sudden realisation, Elena gasped.

"I think it's the original family."

"It's not bad enough that they move into the town but now they want a house-warming gift?" asked Damon with high sarcasm

Flipping over the invite she saw another message.

"Wait, there's more." She said

**Elena,  
>I think it's time we finally meet.<br>Esther.**

* * *

><p>Caroline's phone buzzed and beeped, she picked it up, seeing that it was a voicemail, she opened it up.<p>

"Caroline, its Tyler." Her heart felt like racing, "I know that I should have called soon, I just kinda freaked out and left. But I heard about your dad and I'm sorry. I'm really sorry Caroline. I'm out doing what he said, I'm gonna fix myself up and come home to you... I love you."

The phone beeped again.

She placed her phone back down to hear a knock at her door.

She went to the front of her house and opened the door and saw a envelope on the ground with her name on it in elegant black script.

**Caroline Forbes.**

She picked up the envelope and opened it at once.

**Please join the  
>Mikaelson. Family<br>This evening at Seven o'Clock  
>For Dancing, Cocktails &amp; Celebration<strong>

It read.

What the heck? The young vampire thought.

She turned the letter over which had an additional message.

**I am looking forward to meeting you, Caroline.  
>Until then.<strong>

Leaving Caroline a little speechless and totally confused.

"Seriously?" she said to herself

* * *

><p>Charlotte twirled as she tried on more dresses.<p>

"Woman wearing trousers, it's positively barbaric." Charlotte thought aloud.

Klaus smirked, and took a sip of water from the bottle he had on the table next to him. He sat on an armchair in the boutique.

"There is much to catch you up on." Klaus informed with a raised eyebrow

Charlotte raised a perfectly manicured eyebrow.

"That may be." She shrugged, staring at him, "Now, where is this thing that your mother spoke of? I think she mentioned it was a tuxedo? Where do I get one?"

He let out a good natured laugh.

"Char, I will be wearing the tuxedo, you on the other hand will be wearing a gown which is our next stop." He smiled

"Well then, let us not be delayed any longer." She stated just as his phone rang.

* * *

><p>"Well if Esther wants to talk to me, maybe I should find out why." Said Elena<p>

"Well that's a dumb idea." Damon said straight away, "They've already tried to kill you once."

"No, Elena's right. Bonnie was led to open that coffin for a reason. I think that there is more to this then just some family reunion."

"Can we go back in time for the old Stefan?" asked Damon, "Who cared if Elena lived or died."

Elena looked down, suddenly wishing that the conversation would just end and that she could avoid _that_ particular subject.

"What for? That's your job now." Challenged Stefan

The brother's stared each other down before Elena decided to steer the conversation herself.

"Stefan has a point Damon, I should find out what she wants."

"You can't protect yourself." Damon argued

"Okay, fine. Then I'll go." Decided Stefan

"No, you've pissed off more originals to last a life time. I'll go." Decided Damon as he grabbed the letter from Elena's hands

"Hey!" she said automatically

"End of story." Said Damon as he walked out of the room

* * *

><p>Rebekah was having her nails painted whilst seating in the living room whilst Kol and Finn were being fitted for custom made suits.<p>

"Rebekah, tell me how handsome I am." Said Kol

"Oh, Kol, you know I can't be compelled." Shrugged Rebekah as she inspected her fingernails

Finn smirked but said nothing as Elijah was inspecting shoes that he would wear this evening.

Klaus came roaring through the house, "You went after Elena." He accused Rebekah as he rushed in, looking furious, "What is wrong with you?"

"Here we go." Smiled Rebekah

Charlotte walked in behind him calmly, a little unconcerned of his small outburst, he was defending here descendant of what she had understood.

Not a whole deal had been explained to her as of yet, she was expecting that it would come later.

"Do you want another dagger in your heart?" Klaus threatened

"Again with the dagger threats?" asked Kol

"Oh, go back to staring at yourself." Klaus hit back

"Oh, and who are you? Our father?" Kol mocked

"No, Kol, but you are in my house." Thundered Klaus

"Well perhaps we should take this outside." Kol suggested

The two brothers entered a lovely staring match.

"Enough. There will be no daggers." Said Charlotte

"Niklaus." Said Esther, "Come."

Niklaus followed Esther out of the room, shooting a knowing glance to Charlotte.

"Honesty Kol, was that really necessary?" Charlotte asked as she placed her hands on her hips.

"Always is, Charly." Shrugged Kol as he turned back to the mirror inspecting himself

"Besides, Char, you always come to our rescue." Rebekah winked, causing Charlotte to roll her eyes.

* * *

><p>"Rebekah wasn't even outside of her box for a day and already she's trying to ruin my life. What happened to peace and acceptance?" Klaus tried to argue, "Family."<p>

Esther turned around.

"You put daggers in their hearts," she tried to show him some form of reason; "You want them to get on their knees and kiss your feet for reuniting them?"

"So it's a crime for wanting our family to be as it were?"

"You need to give them time, Niklaus." She said, "I've had a thousand years to be on the other side and be angry and have time to heal. I'm here to make sure that this family does the same."

"I just don't understand. I killed you and still you can that you forgive me?"

"It's been my dream for a thousand years to make this family become one again. Forgiveness is not a chore, it is a gift." Said Esther, changing the subject quickly, "Now are you all prepared for the ball this evening?"

"Don't be ridiculous. You're lucky I'm even going."

"Charlotte is excited; I do wish that you will reconsider your attitude. It's going to be a magical evening." Smiled Esther

"It still astounds me that you're both here alive more than ever." He smiled

"What do you expect when you have two bodies in the same coffin?" she joked and smiled at her son

"You have to love illusions then, don't you mother?"

"I suppose so." She agreed.

* * *

><p>"It's all so weird." Said Elena, the two of them had agreed to meet at the grill and talk about this ball that was being held tonight. "The originals are throwing a ball, like an actual ball."<p>

"It's some twisted Cinderella fetish, is what it is." Exclaimed Caroline, "And why does the evil witch want an audience with you?"

"I don't know." Shrugged Elena, "I honestly have no idea but I know that there is only one way to find out."

"I thought that you told Damon and Stefan that you weren't going?" asked Caroline

"I did." Confirmed Elena, "Which is all the more reason why I need a drama free body guard..."

"Well I think that a Salvatore would look much better in a tux." Tried Caroline, "And by that, I mean Stefan."

"I can't really deal with either of the Salvatore's right now, whatever Stefan is feeling, he's channelling it all into anger or rage against Klaus, and, Damon; it's just not a good idea."

"Why? Because you two made out?"

Elena's eyes widened dramatically.

"Bonnie spilled the beans."

"I was going to tell you, care, just after everything that happened with your dad, I just didn't want to dump that on to you."

"Elena, when you and Matt kissed for the first time, freshman year, you called me the second it happened. And I don't hear about this until now and from someone else."

"I'm sorry."

"Careful, Caroline, it's all good and well until she stabs you in the back with a dagger." Said Rebekah as she entered the grill and made her way to the table that they were sitting at.

"What are you doing here?" Elena asked, "I know your mom's rules. No murdering the locals."

"Oh get over yourself, Elena. Not everything is about you." Rebekah pointed the finger at, and then she walked away abruptly.

Caroline and Elena exchanged glances before looking over to see what Rebekah was up to.

They then saw her give Matt an envelope.

"Oh my God!" said Caroline, "She's inviting him to the ball. Why is she inviting him?"

"Probably to get this reaction from us." Mentioned Elena

"Well what time is this stupid dance anyway?" asked Caroline flustered

"Stupid dance starts at seven." Answered Elena

"You can say that again." Mumbled Caroline, referring to the stupid part.

"So tell me about the message on your card." Requested Elena

"I don't know, it's strange but I guess I'm in the same boat as you. At least yours was signed by the evil witch, mine was just left blank." Replied Caroline

"Weird." Said Elena

"Totally." Agreed Caroline

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So just a quick note - if that seemed to be a little confusing. Esther and Charlotte were locked in the same coffin together thus when it opened, they both were awakened however, Elijah did NOT tell Elena about Charlotte being awakened only Esther, his mother. Hmmm, I wonder why this is... Is it because he still has feelings for her? Or is it because he is hiding a secret? Or is he having regrets about his plan? Or has he changed his plans entirely...? I guess we shall wait and see. Review? Thanks! x<strong>


	8. Chapter Seven

Charlotte walked alone in the back of the estate of Niklaus' house.

Her thoughts and memories were flooding her mind, leaving any opportunity for peace and serenity to a new all time low.

Exhaling sharply, she remembered the way that Niklaus had once, torn out her throat, blood spilled everywhere.

Even on the other side, she had seen with her own eyes, the murder, selfishness, and the horror, surrounded him like an unmistakable aura.

She knew the crimes that he had committed, whether with purpose or just simple plain rage.

She had seen it all.

Charlotte felt empathy for the human race; she knew that there was no stopping him, not whilst he was a hybrid.

The morals that she had learnt throughout her entire life, told her mentally that he could not be saved and that this man, this thing that he had made himself into, was worse than an abomination of nature.

As a witch, she knew that it was part of her duty to rid the threat to nature.

But she could not.

No matter how deep she looked inside her soul, she couldn't comprehend the thought of harming him with that reasoning, she wouldn't.

To say that she was conflicted was like incredibly harsh irony slapping her in the face with cold water in the middle of the night, waking her from sleep.

And that was just it.

She had to face the situation, even with the fact that she hated it.

There was no positive outcome and Charlotte truly struggled with that notion.

She _loved_ this man.

More than she would care to admit to anyone.

Perhaps, that was what made the circumstances so hard?

No, she cut off her thinking and began making her way back up to the house, with a million things racing through her mind.

She knew how she felt about Klaus, she loved him and people made mistakes right?

She would give him a chance to redeem himself.

She would find the Niklaus that she fell in love with, the human that was once compassionate and honourable.

Sighing quietly, then there was the worst case scenario that kept popping up in her head.

He would continue his rampage of never-ending revenge.

Her internal battle that she was having with herself was beginning to drain her a little, both mentally as well as physically, she opened one of the back doors and let herself in, silently pledging that she would not think of Niklaus specifically now and would start to think of the future in a curse-free world with no supernatural beasts.

What exactly would happen in the future?

She didn't know.

Except... There was always one thing that she did know.

One of them would die.

And it terrified her.

* * *

><p>Cars arrived at the mansion continuously, the orchestra were playing the strings, and people were mingling and sipping champagne.<p>

Damon Salvatore had two flutes of champagne, walking up to the mayor of Mystic Falls.

"Hello Carol." He greeted her, giving her a flute to drink

"Hello." She acknowledged as they clinked glasses together

"Hanging out with your new besties?" he asked sarcastically

"I'm the mayor, Damon. When the oldest, deadliest family of vampires moves into your town, you welcome them, with a smile." She said

"Well at least you know who you're borrowing that cup of sugar from." Smiled Damon

"I just want what's best for this town, they've assured me that they want peace and I've assured them that I'd enforce it." She replied

"Mayor Lockwood." Said another voice, causing them both too turn around to face Kol

"I don't believe that we have formally met. Kol Mikaelson." Introduced Kol, offering his hand to embrace hers, he placed a kiss on her hand, "I hope that your lovely town embraces us just as much as we plan to embrace it."

She nodded.

"Damon Salvatore," Introduced Damon, cutting in abruptly into the conversation, "Have we met?"

"I've met a lot of people and you don't particularly stand out." Said Kol before walking away

It was at that moment that the grand doors were opened by two hybrids in tuxedos.

This is what caught Damon's attention until he noticed the brunette walking in the entrance.

She was wearing a gown that wasn't overly fitted at the skirt but was at the torso, with a corset lace-up, it was a deep red gown.

Charlotte walked in feeling incredibly nervous but she had not met anyone officially in the town and Bekah had already informed her that people would mistake her for Elena but perhaps it would be best to let them all believe so, she had then agreed.

The doors shut inaudibly behind her.

She had a simple red shawl covering her shoulders, which a compelled girl helped her out of.

"Excuse me, Carol." Said Damon

Charlotte re-adjusted her gloves and turned slightly to her right where a vampire was.

She jumped slightly, not expecting to see a stranger in her personal space.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, referring to the fact that he was quite close and personal to her

"I could ask you the same thing." The vampire replied, "Nice contacts."

Well that doesn't make any sense, Charlotte thought unless, he thinks I'm Elena.

Not to mention that he thinks my blue eyes are contacts.

"Surprise, surprise." Said Damon as he walked behind Charlotte, she felt immediately trapped, "Nice tux brother. You're not supposed to be here, Elena."

"Well, I am." Charlotte smiled, "And I'm not leaving gentlemen."

It was then that Klaus suddenly appeared, "Yes, it appears that she is already spoken for. Why don't you two lads give a lady some respect and let her be?"

He held out his hand, to which Charlotte gracefully accepted, curtsying as she did so, he then led her away from the Salvatore brothers and to get some champagne.

"You look ravishing." Klaus complimented graciously

"You don't clean up so bad either." She retorted lightly with a small smile

This then left Damon and Stefan staring at each other, mouths wide open, trying to figure out what just happened.

"She can't be compelled right now, can she?" asked Damon

"There's only one way to find out." Said Stefan as they both silently agreed to follow what they thought was Elena not noticing that the doors had opened once more and an almost identical woman walked in, not drawing too much attention to herself when she crossed the threshold, there was only one other person that hadn't gone totally AWOL that it could be.

Elena Gilbert.

* * *

><p>Standing at the bar, watching the bartender pour champagne into two flute glasses.<p>

"Elena Gilbert, I presume?" asked an unfamiliar voice as she turn her head, she was met with a new face, he had picked up the two flutes and offered her one whilst he briefly introduced himself, "I'm Finn Mikaelson."

She looked up at him.

"You're here to see my mother?" he asked

"Is she here?" she asked whilst she looked around

"If you want to see my mother, you'll need to be alone." He informed her

"That's not a problem." She confirmed

"Uhm, if everyone could gather please?" said Elijah loudly

"Excuse me." Finn excused himself

All the originals, including Esther were standing on the staircase.

Elena stood in the crowd, she hadn't seen Stefan or Damon yet which was a good sign, she hoped that it stayed that way until at least after she had spoken with Esther.

"Welcome and thank you for joining us. You know, whenever my mother brings our family together like this, it is tradition for us that we commence the evening with a dance. Tonight's pick is a century's old waltz, so if all of you could please find yourselves a partner and please join us in the ballroom." Said Elijah before he descended the staircase with his siblings following behind him, making their way to the ball room

However, Elena noticed that Esther did not descend the stairs, instead, she walked upstairs and away from the party, discreetly catching Elena's eye gaze and she nodded slightly before she was out of view.

Elena knew that that was her chance, not caring at that moment where Damon and Stefan were.

She hiked up her dress skirt a little so that she could walk faster with ease, and she made her way up the staircase.

* * *

><p>"Something's not right." Stefan concluded<p>

"Gee you think?" Damon said sarcastically as they both continued to watch Klaus and whom they thought was Elena, flirt with each other, "Anyone else feel completely disgusted right about now?" the brunette vampire continued

"Shall we?" asked Niklaus, putting his hand in front of her, she accepted gracefully with a curtsey

"Of course." She smiled as they proceeded to the dance floor, a mysteriously glint in her eyes

"Damon, I don't think that's Elena." Stefan said his thoughts out loud, something just wasn't making sense, and then he put his finger on it, "Katherine. It's got to be Katherine."

"Don't be an idiot, Stefan. Katherine is on the run from Klaus, she wouldn't be flirting with him, be reasonable." Damon reasoned

"Okay, fair point, Damon. What about compulsion?"

"You honestly think that Klaus would forgive her so easily for what she did? Come on Stefan."

"Maybe he's horny." Shrugged Stefan

"He's an original; he could screw and kill anyone." Damon rolled his eyes, why was his brother choosing now of all moments to be completely useless.

"So, we've got basically nothing."

"Pretty much."

They continued to watch the pair dancing in total confusion.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Only a little update I know, things have been so busy lately guys. Life always tends to get in the way. Let me know what you thought! Thanks xx<strong>


	9. Chapter Eight

**AN: Hey everyone - sorry for the short update again, I know but in all honesty, my muse has just been non-existent. Nevertheless, please enjoy the next installment. x **

* * *

><p>As the music filtered through the air, the couple kept their close embrace with each other, moving in sync with each other and the music as one.<p>

"We have an audience." Klaus murmured against her ear, placing a soft kiss there

She let her fingertips travel from his shoulder and to the back of his head, pulling him into a brief but passionate kiss.

Across the room, the two Salvatore brothers' looked away in disgust.

"I think that I might actually be sick." Said Damon, grimacing and gagging

"Damon, wait." Said Stefan, putting a hand on his brothers shoulder, he then pointed to Charlotte's shoulder, "Do you see that?" he asked with interest

Damon followed Stefan's eye gaze, and then turned his head to Stefan, shaking his head.

"What?" he asked, Damon looked at the unmarked flesh and there was nothing wrong with it in the slightest, there wasn't a mark

Stefan looked again and then shook his head out of his reverie.

"Never mind." He said before walking away from the couple, not being able to look on for much longer.

Damon saw this and wasn't about to be left alone watching them, he made his way to the bar, he sensed a very heavy shot of tequila coming to him in his future.

"Privacy at last." Charlotte smiled up at her lover

"It would appear so." Klaus replied, "Are you parched?"

"No, but I appreciate the gesture." Charlotte thanked him

"Anything for you." He vowed, "Always."

More music came through the speakers and then suddenly they switched partners.

Caroline ended up in the arms of Matt and straight away she took that opportunity to gain information.

"What the hell are you doing? Why are you here with the she-devil?" she accused

"Well what was I supposed to say? No?" Matt defended

"Don't even get me started." Caroline huffed

Rebekah was dancing with Damon, but she couldn't take her eyes off of Caroline, several thoughts of the other blonde running through her head.

"Stop staring." Said Damon, "It's creepy."

"That's rich coming from you." She huffed, "And besides, she actually looks good."

"You don't look bad yourself." Damon said whilst checking her out

"Is that supposed to be a compliment?" Rebekah asked

"You tried to kill Elena last night. You don't get compliments." Damon smirked

"Caveman." She taunted

Then he realised, "Wait, where is Elena?" he looked around the room but could not see her in sight, inwardly he swore for good measure.

* * *

><p>Elena walked through a corridor before being called by Elijah, she had to give some credit to herself, she had made it this far without being detected, it was kind of a new record.<p>

"Elena."

"Elijah."

"I understand that my mother has requested to see you."

"Uh, yeah." She smiled awkwardly, "Why? Is something wrong?"

"Well her ability to forgive my brother after everything that he has done to destroy this family, strikes me as a little strange, to say the least." Elijah told her

"Do you think that it's an act?" Elena asked

"It has me asking questions that I never thought I'd ask." Elijah gave her insight, "Can I depend on you to tell me what she says? In turn, I will give you all the information you seek."

She nodded vigorously, "Of course."

"I'll find you later, okay?" she promised before continuing her walk, not wanting to be caught by either of the Salvatore brothers.

* * *

><p>Rebekah stood next to Kol whom was drinking a flute of champagne, Rebekah lifted one from a waiter's tray, she had decided that she needed one also, perhaps several.<p>

"Where's your date?" her brother asked her

"Flirting with his ex." She answered

"You've changed Bekah," said Kol, "You know that settling for mortals is the first sign of weakness."

Rebekah was tempted to smash the flute against his head, but she refrained from doing so.

"I'm not settling," she defended, she would not be upstaged by her brother, "I brought him here to kill him."

"He's Elena's friend," she then elaborated, "If he dies, she suffers. But I've already been scolded once so would you help your baby sister out?"

"To spit right in the face of mother's rules and to face Charly's wrath?" he asked her, a large grin crossed his features, "I'm in."

"Perfect." She smiled in turn; they both did a silent toast and took a sip of champagne, sealing the deal.

Oh yes, tonight certainly would be a magical evening.

* * *

><p>Esther burned a bunch of dried sage and performed a quick spell to keep it burning when there was a quick knock at the door.<p>

"That will be the girl." She announced

Finn made a move and opened the door, letting her in to the room.

"You're alone. Wise choice." He commented

Elena looked at what Esther was holding in a mild panic.

"It's only sage." The older woman said to put her at ease, "I've spelled it so that we can talk freely without the fear of being overheard. That will be all, Finn. Thank you."

Finn nodded and left the room, closing the door gently behind him.

"You must have a million questions for me, Elena." Esther started the conversation, "Please, sit."

Elena sat down on the couch next to Esther whom had just put the sage down in a silver bowl.

"How are you alive?" Elena asked, "Are you a ghost, or?"

"Not exactly," the witch smiled, "When I died, the witch Ayanna, preserved my body with a spell. She was a close friend of mine, an ancestor of your friend, Bonnie."

"So that's why only Bonnie and her mother could open up the casket?" Elena pieced together

"They complete the Bennett bloodline. I drew power from them and their ancestors that were on the other side with me."

"So you've been on the other side for a thousand years?" Elena found it hard to comprehend

"Nature's way of punishing me for turning my family into vampires, but there is a way to undo the evil that I created."

"You're going to help us kill Klaus aren't you?"

"One thing at a time, Elena. For now, I simply need your help."

Elena nodded, this was it, this was their opportunity and she sure as hell wasn't going to waste it.

"Anything."

"A drop of blood from the doppelganger, its essence will be in the champagne toast later this evening." Esther advised her, holding up a knife, "So will you do it? Or shall I?"

Elena took off a glove and offered her hand; Esther pricked her finger and squeezed two drops of blood into a goblet, already filled with a concoction.

* * *

><p>Kol walked quickly to get in pace with Rebekah.<p>

"I'm itching to kill something and it wasn't waiting for me." Kol fumed

"The Mayor cornered me." Rebekah rolled her eyes, "Give me fifteen minutes to lure Matt outside."

"Outside? What's wrong with right here on the stairs?" Kol's eyes flashed dangerously "Make a spectacle."

"You sound like an idiot, Kol." Rebekah replied, "Mother would kill you if you ruined her party. See you outside."

Kol smiled, oh no, that didn't sit well for him.

It looked like matters were going to have to be taken into his own hands, not that he minded of course.

After all, the danger was just part of the fun.

* * *

><p>Elena walked back into the ballroom, Elijah discreetly slid next to her.<p>

"So how was my mother?" he asked

"Intense." She shrugged, what an understatement, she couldn't help but add as an after thought

"And for what reason did she need to speak with you in private?" he continued

Elena did not know what to say, so she didn't, she only glanced up the stairs.

"Elena, should I be concerned on my mother's intentions?"

"She just wanted to apologise for trying to have me killed."

"So it's true then? She's forgiven Klaus?"

"It's true."

* * *

><p>The rest of the evening went relatively quickly, to Charlotte's pleasure.<p>

She was now lying in bed wrapped in Niklaus' arms, an embrace which she took great solace in.

It only took her moments before she fell asleep.

_"There was a time that I would have done anything for you, Klaus," stated Elijah ironically, as he handled the blade with quick precision, slicing his brother's chest open, "That's changed, now you must die." _

_"You won't get away with this mate." Gasped Klaus with a sickening smile, "I will always find my way back to her, you will never ever get her. I forbid it."_

_The normally controlled Elijah was angry for his brother's stab of jealously perhaps he shouldn't have let this get to him but nevertheless he did, he kicked his brother square where he had sliced. Klaus winced a great deal from the pain, mildly coughing as he did so._

_Elijah then bent down, one hand ripping Klaus' head back._

_"You forbid it?" he spat, "You no longer have any power over me brother, you are nothing."_

_"Typical, Elijah, you never will let go will you..." Klaus laughed as much as he could in-between gasps for air._

_Elijah stepped away, confused with his brother's reactions but did not want to voice this opinion. _

_He kept his facial expression clear and void of any emotions. _

_He did not dare say another word, he savoured the moment of watching his older brother shiver in the pain that he was inflicting._

_"How did it feel to be bathed and soaked in a combination of lovely herbs?" Elijah changed the subject_

_"Oh you mean the vervain and wolfs bane?" Klaus retorted, "It was fantastic, you should try it, brother. It certainly opens the pores, though let's be honest, you would never have considered such methods on your own, and it's too vindictive for you." _

_"Do you honestly think I'm not malicious enough for your liking? Well my apologies, I'll up the ante for you."_

_Elijah grabbed a dagger from his inside suit jacket pocket and stabbed Klaus in his right thigh, twisting the knife deep, leaving the dagger in there for the moment. He would deal with it later._

_"What are you trying to prove brother?" asked Klaus_

_"I needn't prove anything to you Niklaus. You opinion always has and always will be invalid."_

_"Oh I beg to differ."_

_"Enough! I have let you drag this out long enough, tonight you will die and you will burn. There will be no coming back."_

_"Rather big words coming from you, don't you think?"_

_"Go to hell Niklaus, let us pray that it won't spit you back out again."_

_"Nik!"_

_"Goodbye brother." He said as he threw three burning logs on the bed of dried out hay that Niklaus was laying on._

_"Oh my God! Niklaus!" she screamed as she saw him, smeared in blood and about to burn. _

_Why was Elijah doing this? _

_"Don't do this; I'm begging you, Eli!"_

_"Charlotte," he whispered, he never intended for her to find out that he killed Niklaus, it made him speechless, he opened his mouth but nothing came out. _

_"Nik!" she yelled, coughing a little as she inhaled some smoke, she ran to his side and tried to pull him away _

_"Please." She pleaded as she sank to her knee's sobbing_

_"I'm sorry." Elijah whispered as he took the plunge_

_"No!" she screamed, the sound echoed over long distances_

* * *

><p><strong>AN: And that's all for now, again, I know that it's really not that much. Let me know what you thought! Don't panic, even thought my muse isn't really 100% there... I do plan to finish this. Thanks for all of the continued support so far, it honestly means alot :-) xx<strong>


	10. Chapter Nine

**AN: Yes, you're not seeing things and no your brain is not playing tricks on you... I actually updated... A massive thank you to all that have reviewed and are still reading this, as well as for putting up with my inconsistency in regards to updating... I mean let's face it, it's one of my not so strong traits. This year for me has been huge in the sense that I've had a lot of things happen that have been quite emotionally taxing and my I have also been quite sick as well... So this chapter is a little bit longer... Enjoy! x **_  
><em>

* * *

><p><em>The wind blew through her hair lightly as she sat down next to Elijah. <em>

"_You wished to see me." She said questioning _

"_I did." He confirmed_

"_You had something to tell me?" Charlotte asked as the breeze outside became suddenly still, a small smile on her lips, they had become close friends. _

_He nodded._

"_Niklaus does not live by any rules but his own."Elijah said quietly and she knew exactly where this was going to go._

"_He is a very charming man." Charlotte said instead, relaying the truth that she held dear. _

_She knew of Elijah's intentions but she could not hear another word of it, despite how deeply she cared for him, her consuming love for Niklaus was stronger._

"_I beg you to consider this." He said sincerely and truthfully, she knew that he was in love with her._

"_Elijah..."she tried to let him off easy, "True love is not real unless it is returned." _

_It was at that moment and Niklaus came in to view and extended his arm, waiting for her to accept. _

_It was then that she noticed the blood on the front of his shirt, not to mention that it was fresh. _

_Regardless of her thoughts... She got up from her seat and took two steps towards Klaus before turning around to Elijah and saying gently, "I'm sorry."_

_As much as she cared for Elijah, it was Niklaus that held her heart and always would. _

_Charlotte then took Klaus' arm and the pair of them walked away, leaving Elijah to his own thoughts._

_Elijah's head was spinning with the brief moment he managed to spend with Charlotte; a thousand thoughts raced in his mind but in less than a minute, all he saw was red. _

"Elijah?" said Kol interrupting his brother's thoughts

Elijah cleared his throat before averting his gaze to Kol, "Yes?"

"Fancy an after party drink?" Kol offered

"Perhaps another time, brother." Elijah declined, offering a small smile, "I'm going to retire for the evening."

"You know... Tomorrow I won't allow you to be so mediocre, Elijah." Kol promised

"Tomorrow will be a new day, Kol."

"Indeed it shall."

* * *

><p>Elena closed the front door behind her and sighed; she felt awful.<p>

Not a second later, there was a knock on the door.

She opened it and was hardly surprised to see Stefan waiting on her porch, his eyes immediately took her appearance in.

"You went to the ball?" he asked as he walked through the threshold and shut the door swiftly behind him.

"Yeah, I'm surprised I didn't see you." Elena yawned tiredly as she put down her purse on a nearby table, she wasn't really in the right frame of mind for the argument she knew would be following

His brows furrowed in confusion and his next question floored her completely.

"Did you wear that all evening?"

"No Stefan, I wore a tux and decided to dress up on my way home." She said sarcastically

"Elena, look at me." He said seriously before stepping close to her

"Stefan." She sighed as he held on to her by her arms and looked into her eyes

She raised an eyebrow as if to say 'really?', after all this evening had taken its toll on her.

"How is this possible?" he asked confused

"What is it?" she asked immediately, she had learned by now to trust his instincts

"Stefan, you're scaring me." Elena admitted

"Your eyes." He murmured, his irises expanded and he looked deeply in to her eyes, "Elena, it's important that you tell me the truth. Have you been compelled?"

Elena shook her head and rolled her eyes, "You know I can't be compelled Stefan."

He let go of her arms deciding to let that certain subject rest for a while until he spoke to Damon and figured it all out.

"You saw Esther didn't you?" Stefan changed the topic

"Yeah." She pressed her lips together before completely caving in and she told him everything, from meeting Esther to the uniting all of the originals together.

"So, uh. Esther wants to kill her whole family?" asked Stefan "How's that for mother of the year."

"Yeah, she really was the weapon that we wanted and I had to look Elijah right in the eye and lie about it."

"Well good, I can't really say that I'm sorry to see any of them go."

"I just signed their death sentences, Stefan."

"No, you signed Klaus' death sentence Elena, the rest are just collateral damage."

"It's not that simple." She shook her head

"Their family has brought you nothing but darkness, Elena. It is that simple."

"Stefan, how do you that? Act like you don't care and that you don't feel because you know what, I can't do that. I do feel, I feel everything."

"Elena, stop."

"I'm not going to stop Stefan. Because I don't believe that you feel nothing."

"You think I want to be this person? I hurt you Elena, I bit you. I hate myself for it and what I did to you."

"Then show it. Something, anything, Stefan, anything is better than trying to convince me that you don't care."

She placed her hand on the sides of his neck, willing him to see reason.

"Stefan." She whispered and he gripped her hands tightly.

"If I let myself care, all I feel is pain." He let go of her hands and her arms fell by her sides as she watched him walk away from her and down the front steps of her house.

* * *

><p>Rebekah's hair had fallen out of place and hung loosely around her face, Damon was casually buttoning up his pants as she re-adjusted her dress slightly as they walked to the front door of the Salvatore Boarding House.<p>

"So let's not make a big deal out of this?" she asked lightly

"My thoughts exactly." Confirmed Damon

"Besides, I expect you'll come calling soon enough." She teased him

"Now, let's not hold our breath." He said as he opened the door to reveal Elena behind it about to knock.

Elena stared at them, mouth agape as Damon and Rebekah looked at each other and smiled awkwardly as Rebekah pushed past Elena and walked away.

Elena gave him a cold hard glare and walked inside.

"Did you stop taking your vervain?" she questioned him

"You think Rebekah had to compel me? He asked, offended

"What's wrong with you?! Less than forty-eight hours ago, she tried to kill me."

"Let's just move past that, Elena." Damon shrugged as he poured himself a drink.

It was too early for him to deal with this conversation.

He was still trying to wrap his head around what happened last night, she was critiquing him? Especially, after she had clearly been all over Klaus right in front of him and Stefan included.

"So this is how it's going to be now? I hurt your feelings, and this is how you lash out at me?"

"Well, maybe for once, something I did, had nothing to do with you, Elena."

She froze for a second.

"You should know that Esther is planning on killing her entire family, she's linked them altogether with a spell, whatever happens to one of them, happens to all of them."

"That's great." He commended her, maybe her flirty moves on the originals had actually been for a purpose so he laid off the subject... But alas, he couldn't help himself, "Klaus will finally be dead, we win."

She frowned.

"Why do you look like someone just shot a panda bear?" asked Damon confused

"Because to kill Klaus, she has to kill all of them, including Elijah and he doesn't deserve this."

"Am I supposed to care about, Elijah?"

"Well, what about Rebekah. Shouldn't you at least care about her?"

"Two seconds ago, you were pissed that she attacked you, so win, win."

Elena shook her head in anger.

"Don't do anything to screw this up, Elena. I mean it."

"Why are you doing this, Damon?"

"He's right, you know." Said Stefan as he walked in the house, "Klaus has to die, they all do, and they all will."

"See, it's democracy like a nation." Agreed Damon as he took a sip of his celebration beverage

Elena stormed out of the house, slamming the front door loudly behind her, not caring whether or not her actions looked like a tantrum.

* * *

><p>Charlotte awoke in bed alone that morning; she got up immediately before noticing a rose on Klaus' side of the mattress and a simple note reading 'Good Morning Sweetheart'<p>

She got dressed into a pair of black slacks and then a simple white blouse and brushed her teeth before heading downstairs, rose in hand.

Her eyes sought out one person in particular.

Niklaus was busy sketching whilst he was lounging about and had his feet on the table.

"Good morning." She greeted as she sat down on the sofa next to him, immediately the sketch pad was discarded and Charlotte was pulled in to Niklaus' arms, and she landed directly on top on him, he pressed his lips to her cheek.

"Good morning." Niklaus smiled

"Ah, Charly, 'bout time you woke up." Said Kol excitedly, "Now the fun can begin."

"Morning, Kol." Charlotte smiled as Klaus wrapped his arms around her and rested them, "Bored already?"

"You know him too well, love." Smirked Niklaus

"What do they do in this one-pony town, brother?" Kol asked when Rebekah walked in.

"Well, well, well, there's our girl." Teased Kol forgetting his question temporarily

Rebekah glared at him, silently screaming, do not mess with me.

She moved to avoid him when he moved in each direction she tried.

"Get out of my way, Kol." Said Rebekah

"Out all night? What a scandal?" Kol continued, smiling like a spoiled little boy on Christmas.

"Kol." Said Charlotte with warning that he was treading on thin ice but Kol continued anyway.

"I trust you did better than that commoner, Matt, was it?"

That did it for Rebekah.

"If you don't shut your mouth, the next thing to come out of it will be your teeth."

This made Niklaus chuckle, causing Charlotte to elbow him in the ribs.

"Don't start Nik." Said Rebekah sternly

"I didn't say anything." Klaus defended himself

Kol flopped himself down on an armchair as they went back to the conversation prior to Rebekah coming home.

"I'm bored." Groaned Kol, "And our sister is a strumpet."

Rebekah shot daggers at him, as did Charlotte.

"But at least she's having fun..."

"Her private life needn't be your concern." Charlotte stepped in

"I need entertainment." Sighed Kol, choosing not to argue with the Petrova as he well enough knew that Klaus would get involved.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Go on, have at it." Said Klaus

"It's no fun to go alone. Join me Nik." Kol whined

Klaus ignored him.

Charlotte stood up, much to Klaus' dismay.

"It's the least you could do after sticking a dagger in my heart." Kol guilt-tripped him

Klaus looked at his brother.

"Okay. Why not? As long as Charlotte joins us." Niklaus bargained

Kol didn't look like he cared.

"Next time." Said Charlotte as a sudden wave of nausea hit her, "Besides, I think Rebekah and I should have a bonding day." She forced out

Rebekah gave her an odd look and Charlotte had to sit down again, she did so with haste.

"I didn't nearly have enough to drink enough with you trying to murder Rebekah's date and all." Said Klaus moodily to Kol, slamming his sketch pad on the table, Charlotte placed the rose on top of the pad before watching Niklaus walk back upstairs.

Kol got up and walked away.

"Yes, please go. This house has enough men rolling around in it." Said Rebekah

"Just like you 'Bekah." Kol called out

Rebekah threw her shoe in his direction before yelling out, "Good riddance, both of you."

Rebekah sat down next to her best friend.

"Are you alright, Char? You've gone dreadfully pale."

"Yes, I'm fine." Charlotte brushed it off, "Now tell me about your evening."

Within seconds, Rebekah told her absolutely everything.

* * *

><p>Bonnie lit the sage once more from the candles situated on a plate in front of her folded legs on Elena's bed.<p>

"He was gloating." She explained as she paced the room, "Like actually gloating."

Bonnie sighed and looked up at her best friend.

Clasping her hands and closing her eyes to concentrate.

"Like he was proud of sleeping with her." Elena waved arm about, without hesitating, she continued, "Is it working?"

Caroline opened the door and looked at the burnt sage.

"It's not working; I can hear every word you're saying about Damon, the vampire jiggalow." Said Caroline frustrated

"I don't know." Shrugged Elena before both girls looked at Bonnie.

"It's a tricky spell." Bonnie said

"When Esther did it, she kept the sage burning, there was a lot more smoke." Elena pitched in

"Alright." Bonnie tried again by lighting the sage once more, "I'll try it again." she waved it to and fro in the air but nothing happened.

Elena looked at Caroline and Caroline shut the door.

"Speaking of Esther, you should know that she came to see me and Abby this morning." Bonnie told her

Elena's eyes widened, "And all this time, you've listened to me vent about Damon?"

Bonnie shook her head, "I didn't want you to worry."

"Well, what did she want?"

"She wanted to introduce herself, I mean; I did help bring her back." Bonnie replied, "She channelling our whole ancestral bloodline for power. Maybe she thought she was being polite?"

"Okay, well, is there a way to stop you channelling you?" Elena asked

"Even if there was, why would I want that?"

Elena sat down on the bed, facing Bonnie.

"I just keep thinking... Before the sun and the moon ritual, Elijah found a way to keep me alive, and now I'm in the exact same position and I'm just going to let him die? It just doesn't feel right."

Caroline opened the door again.

"Okay." She said as she stepped into the room, "First of all, this privacy spell is totally not working. Second, Elena you are not doing this, Esther is doing this."

"There's no time to change our mind, Elena." Bonnie added, "He'll be dead by the end of the night."

"What?" Elena paused

"It's a full moon; Esther needs to harness the energy of a celestial event. She asked me and Abby to join her.

* * *

><p>Damon swung a bottle of liquor in his hand as he walked in to the study to meet his brother.<p>

"Join me in a little victory drink?" Damon offered

Stefan turned around, and then looked back the fire in front of him.

"We should wait until Klaus is dead." He reasoned

"Why are you so extraverted?" Damon asked, "Did you see the way we stood up to Elena? I like you and my team. It must have driven her nuts."

He poured himself a drink and sipped it.

"You still think that she'd going to screw this up?" Stefan asked as he turned around again and faced his brother, watching him drink. "Don't you?"

"I think somebody needs to talk to her." Damon replied, "She's not going to listen to anything I have to say."

"Maybe it has something to do with your little sleepover?"

"It's not my fault she decided to get jealous." Damon defended

"Well, given who you chose to sleep with, I would one hundred percent say that it's your fault."

"Whatever. I did you a favour. Just make sure she doesn't screw up Esther's plan."

Damon sat his glass down and walked out of the room.

* * *

><p>Elijah was walking around his mother's room for a brief minute when he noticed a bunch of burnt sage; he picked it up and examined it.<p>

His mother had performed a privacy spell.

Meanwhile Downstairs...

"So what are you going to do?" smiled Charlotte, the pair of them hadn't moved an inch, Rebekah sitting sideways on an armchair with her legs hanging over the side and Charlotte laying on the couch, her head propped up by her hand.

"About Matt, Damon or my lousy excuse of a brother?" Bekah asked in return with a small grin.

Charlotte laughed lightly, "Both eventually but let's start with Damon first."

"Ha." The blonde scoffed, "Well that's easy. It was a once off and that's all I have to say of the matter."

"Fair choice. And what of Matt?" Charlotte pushed on

"Oh come on, Char, I think we've done enough analysing of my life, how about yours?"

"Don't change the subject." Charlotte teased her friend, smiling, she knew that the conversation was hitting Rebekah in a place that she liked to avoid, but sometimes it's good to get things out.

Rebekah sighed.

"You're right."

"Rebekah." Said a Elijah as he walked in to the room, causing both women to sit up straight Charlotte ignored the wave of nausea that hit her again and proceeded to breathe a little heavier than normal.

"Eli." Greeted Charlotte with a warm smile

"Char." He replied

"Oh not you too, Elijah." Rebekah rolled her eyes

He held the burnt sage in his hand.

"I'm worried about mother." He revealed, "Have the two of you noticed her strange behaviour?"

"She's been locked in a box for a thousand years, no offence Charly."

"Is that burnt sage?" Charlotte asked, confusion crossed her features, ignoring Rebekah's comment

Rebekah took it from her brother and examined it herself.

"She was doing a privacy spell." Elijah guessed

Rebekah shook her head, "You know she fancies such things. Why don't you ask Finn? He's been dotting on her."

"I don't trust Finn, he hates what we are. He always has." Elijah said sadly

"That's not true. And as for mother, she returned for one reason, to make our family whole again. She loves us. What trouble are you looking to find?" Rebekah replied

Elijah looked at his sister and then at Charlotte.

"Your concerns are safe with us, Eli." Charlotte confirmed

He nodded and murmured, "Thank you." before heading off leaving the girls to gossip once more.

"Well, I'm off to have a shower and freshen up, I'll be back soon and I'll show you around town." Said Rebekah before heading upstairs

"Okay." Charlotte called out before she laid down on the couch and let sleep overtake her.

_The night was young and there was a celebration throughout the entire village._

_Charlotte hair was curled to perfection it half of it up on the top of her head, with the rest in flowing curls trailing down her back. _

_She wore a full length emerald green gown, of which she was thankful as the coolness of the night had drifted in. _

_She gave a small smile as Elijah brought her hand to his lips._

"_How is your night, Eli?" Charlotte asked_

"_Splendid." He smiled when he saw his brother walking towards them, "Your husband is here." _

_Charlotte turned around and saw Niklaus walking towards them; this warmed her heart as he embraced her tightly. _

"_Why are you looking at me like that?" Charlotte blushed; colour flooded her cheeks as she caught his gaze._

_He tucked a lose curl behind her ear before kissing her on her cheek._

"_I just love you, that's all, sweetheart."_

* * *

><p>The sound of knocking was heard and Elena rushed down the staircase and then opened the door, pausing momentarily as she took in the appearance of Elijah.<p>

"Elena." He greeted

"Elijah." She returned, with a small smile

"I don't mean to intrude but I was hoping you might accompany me?" Elijah asked, "I want to show something."

Elena nodded and she grabbed her jacket and cell and walked to Elijah's car, jumping in to the passenger seat, Elijah hopped in and off they went.

"Do you think you could tell me more about Charlotte?"

In less than ten minutes, they had arrived at their destination, both got out the car.

"I forgot how much I miss this land." Elijah commented

"I can't even imagine what it must have been like a thousand years ago." Said Elena

"You know your school was built over an Indian village, where I saw my first werewolf." He revealed, "And the town square was where the native's would gather to worship and over that, there was a field where wild horses used to graze."

They walked through the woods.

"That's incredible." She said in wonder

"Come." He led the way and they stopped at some stone formations

"Do you know this area too?"

"As a matter of fact I do, below this is a cavern that I used to play in as a boy. It connects to a system of tunnels that stretch across the entire area." He bent down and felt the grass in-between his fingertips, "It was nature's way of shelter to provide us from the savages of the full moon."

Elena tucked her hair behind one ear.

"My mother said that there must be a balance." He continued

"Elijah, I should probably go home."

"It's not in your nature to be deceitful and yet when I asked you about the meeting with my mother at the ball last night, you lied straight to my face."

Elena could feel her heart beat skip and jump in a frenzy, "That's not true," she denied, "I told you that all your mother wanted was a new start-"

"I can hear your heart beat." He interrupted her, "It jumps when you're being dishonest. You lied to me at the ball and you are lying to me now. Tell me the truth." He stepped close to her

"I never wanted this to happen." Elena defended herself

"What, Elena?" his voice grew more dangerous by the second

Elena gulped, "We were told that whatever was in that coffin would kill Klaus, when we found out that it was your mother. We didn't know what to think."

"Since her return, all she's ever said is that she wants to make our family whole again."

"When she asked to see me, I thought that maybe she could help and that she would find a way to kill Klaus but it's not just Klaus that she wants to kill."

"It's all of us. She wants to kill us all doesn't she?" Elijah guessed, "She wants to undo the evil she created."

"I'm so sorry, Elijah. I wish that there was something that I could do to help."

"You know, one thing that I have discovered in my lifetime on this earth is to be careful what you wish for."

Elena looked at him strangely; Elijah stomped hard on the ground beneath him, causing Elena to jump, Elijah grabbed her and jumped in the hole in the earth.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: What are your thoughts? Still with me for the long haul? x<strong>


	11. Chapter Ten

**AN: I know, another update... You're probably as surprised as I am LOL. Please bear in mind that this one is shorter than the previous chapter that was just uploaded but otherwise, enjoy and let me know what you think... Read on...**

* * *

><p>Elena held her phone up in the air, desperately trying to get a signal but it just beeped consistently to notify her that she was no way in range anymore.<p>

She snapped her phone shut and put it in her pocket, sighing in ultimate frustration.

She looked around the cavern she was in, there looked to be several different tunnels, she was all alone, Elijah had taken her down and then jumped back out immediately, leaving her behind.

Her ears registered a car starting and then the roar of the accelerator as the car that they had arrived in sped away.

"Great." She muttered to herself

* * *

><p>Rick ordered another drink at the Mystic Falls Grill's Bar as Meredith explained the results of the x-ray's of when he had been stabbed.<p>

"Well what about my head? Why can't I remember anything about the attack?" he asked

She shrugged, "Your CT scans were clear. Maybe you were compelled to forget?"

"Wait, you think the killer's a vampire?" Alaric asked as they both looked around the bar cautiously

Meredith shook her head but confirmed, "There are no other suspects. It's the obvious conclusion."

"Oh come on now." Said a deep voice, casing Rick to turn around, "Let's not go blaming the new family in town just because you lot have got yourselves a killer at large." Klaus continued as he sat down at the bar with his brother Kol.

Meredith looked at Rick worried.

Kol stared intently at them all.

"Don't mind us." Klaus brushed off, "My brother and I are just here to let off some steam. Right, Kol?"

Kol stared directly at Meredith, "Right." He confirmed

Meredith averted her eyes to her drink, avoiding the nagging feeling in the pit of her stomach and the flush of nervousness that pulsated throughout her body as she saw the way that Kol was looking at her.

* * *

><p>Bonnie and Abby were in the woods walking towards an old abandoned building were several witches were murdered inside.<p>

Esther and Finn were waiting for them.

"Who's the creepy lurking guy?" Abby asked

Bonnie giggled lightly before explaining, "That's her son, Finn, and he's a vampire so..."

Bonnie tugged her ear and Abby came to the realization that he had heard what she had just said about him.

"Oh."

"Bennett witches." Esther greeted them, "Thank you for coming. I can think of no better allies than the woman that sent Mikael into his deep sleep and the girl whom fought Niklaus so bravely."

"Why exactly did you invite us here?" Abby asked

"You are the descendants from the great witch Ayanna, she was a great mentor of mine and I think it's only fitting that I draw from her bloodline." Esther explained

"So are you drawing from our ancestors?" Bonnie asked

"I draw from the entirety of the Bennett bloodline, both living and dead." Esther confirmed, "The connection affords me great power, although it is somewhat difficult to maintain, which is why I require you, mother and daughter, the bloodline manifest."

Abby and Bonnie looked at each other, attempting to read each other's thoughts.

"Tonight my sister's," Esther grabbed their hands and held them in her own, "We shall bring peace to the spirit's of nature that we serve and for that, I thank you."

* * *

><p>Elena had been walking around aimlessly, trying to find her way, she thought that she saw some light in the distance of one of the tunnels so she took her chance and made a small run for it.<p>

All of a sudden, something or rather someone jumped in front of her, which caused Elena to skid to a stop and take in the sight in front of her.

The blonde hair and deadly snarky tone was unmistakable.

"Going somewhere?" Rebekah taunted

"What are you doing here?" Elena asked, getting a grip on her breath, albeit it was heavier than usual

Rebekah looked her up and down.

"Not much." She shrugged, looking in to the doppelgangers eyes, one of the tell tale signs that this was not her best friend and rather an annoying, backstabbing imposter, "Unless you try to run... In which case, then I get to kill you."

Rebekah's lips twitched upwards in a sadistic smile.

* * *

><p>Stefan opened the door to the boarding house.<p>

"I can't find her anywhere." He said panicked as he found Damon in front of the fireplace staring at Elijah seated on a chair.

"Hello Stefan." Said Elijah

"He has Elena." Damon filled in his brother

"Actually, Rebekah has Elena." Elijah corrected, "As you can imagine, my sister is just dying to tear her throat out."

Stefan's eyes widened a little.

"So, if you want to save Elena's life, I need you to help me stop my mother." Elijah finished

"I'm a little embarrassed to admit it, but when we're going to kill a thousand year witch. I'm a little rusty." Said Damon

"Yes, I am well aware that she will not be easy to kill and unfortunately even when killed, it seems that my mother doesn't want to stay dead." Elijah noted, "Not with the spirits of nature on her side."

"So what are we supposed to do?" asked Stefan, taking a few steps closer to Elijah

"The witches that released my mother, she's drawing power from them and their bloodline, meaning that their bloodline needs to be broken."

"Broken?" said Stefan, Damon stood beside his brother.

"Yeah, he means..." said Damon as he glided his fingertips across his throat.

"You want us to kill them?" Stefan confirmed

"You know I'd do it myself but I've got absolutely no idea as to where they are and besides as soon as they saw me coming they'd immediately know my intent but if they see you, they won't be expecting it. In any case," Elijah stood up, "You have until six minutes past nine to find them."

"That's a little super specific of you." Commented Damon

"That is when the full moon will be at its peak." Elijah informed them, "That will be the time that my mother will have all the power that she'll need to kill me and my family. If you do not stop her before then, Elena dies by Rebekah's hand. So we all have our timeline, I suggest you get started."

* * *

><p>Rebekah filmed Elena on her phone as proof to the Salvatore's that she really did have Elena.<p>

"Alright love, look in to the camera." The blonde taunted her

"What are you doing?" Elena asked

"Shooting a picture to inspire your boyfriends. Why don't you tell them what it's like being stuck in a hole with your biggest fan?"

"I guess you think I had this coming, huh?" Elena shot back at her to distract her

The phone went down.

"After what I did to you." Elena continued

"You know what, I don't know what I want more, to find out we're saved or to find out it's alright to kill you."

Elena shook her head.

"This isn't my fault." Elena said, "I wanted to get rid of Klaus, at one point, so did you, I didn't know that your mother was planning on killing all of you."

"Do you really think that I want to be spending potentially, my last few hours of my life having idle chit chat with the girl that literally stabbed me in the back? Of course not, but for some reason, everybody wants to bend over backwards to save your life which is incredibly annoying but makes you the perfect hostage. So why don't you sit down and shut up before I ruin everything by ripping your head off." Rebekah ranted

Elena sat down quietly.

* * *

><p><em>"It's like you're screaming but no one can hear you." Charlotte told her mother, Elijah had just murdered his brother, Charlotte had witnessed it all and was still digesting the fact that it had just happened<em>

_"I almost feel ashamed that someone could be that important and without them, I feel like nothing." Charlotte continued as she looked down at her hands and she began to cry_

_Charlotte's mother stroked her daughter's hair._

_"No one will ever understand how it much hurts; you are both bound to each other."Her mother told her_

_"Elijah killed him, his own brother! I don't understand." _

_"Charlotte..."_

_"I just feel hopeless, like nothing can save me." Charlotte sobbed_

_"He will save you." Her mother replied_

_"But it's over, he's gone." Charlotte cried_

_"The God's have a wicked sense of humour, my child." Charlotte's mother embraced her and then placed a leather bound book in her hands_

_"That is little consolation when you have been betrayed by a friend."Charlotte whispered_

_Her mother left her with the book and let her have some space on her own. _

_Charlotte opened the book, it was a diary and inside the cover was a cloth, she opened it and found a pressed flower, the same flower that she had given him all those years ago. _

_Charlotte let out a strangled gasp as tears flooded her cheeks._

Charlotte awoke with a gasp.

* * *

><p>"Yeah, no, they're still here." Said Rick quietly on the phone as he glanced at the Originals, "They've drank their way halfway through the Grill's liquor supply."<p>

"Good," said Damon, "It'll be easier if they're wasted."

"So what's the plan?" asked Rick as he checked on Meredith as she was playing pool

"Divide and conquer." Damon said simply, "First we need a little blonde distraction."

* * *

><p>Caroline fidgeted with her phone before slipping it in her coat pocket as she walked in to the Grill and then opened her coat so that a fairly decent amount of cleavage could be seen.<p>

She stopped and looked at Rick and Meredith, raising her eyebrow slightly as if to say, move on to step two.

"You know, I remember her from last night, she looks like a tasty treat." Smirked Kol

"She's a baby vampire." Klaus filled him in

Caroline walked up to the bar and then turned away from the Original brothers, intending on turning and walking left.

"Caroline," Klaus stopped her

"Oh, it's you." She said

"Join us for a drink?" Klaus offered as he raised his glass, Kol raised his as well

Caroline looked at Kol.

"Thanks but I'd rather die of thirst." She said before walking away, arms crossed over her chest

"Well isn't she stunning." Commented Kol as Klaus took another sip of his drink

"She certainly looks good walking away from you." Klaus mocked his brother

"I prefer brunette's anyway." Shrugged Kol before pointing to Meredith discreetly so that his brother knew whom he was taking about "Now she has spiked my interest."

"Go on then." Klaus dared him

"I'll take that as a challenge." Said Kol before he downed his drink and got up.

Just then, Niklaus phone went off, he stared at the name flashing on screen, Elijah.

Sighing, he answered it.

"What is it brother?"

"You certainly sound grumpy." Laughed Charlotte

Niklaus' tension instantly faded away, "Charlotte." He smiled, "What are you doing with Elijah's phone?"

"He left it with me so that I could call you all; he's out getting another one."

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><p><strong>AN: Thoughts? x<strong>


	12. Chapter Eleven

**AN: Good afternoon beautiful people... Well it's afternoon where I am! Definitely time to bust out the bottle of wine in the fridge. We have the next installment, I hope you like... Charlotte and Caroline finally meet... Interesting... From now on sort of thing, the pace is going to get a lot faster so I hope you like it. As always, enjoy and let me know your thoughts with a review or PM :-) Xx **

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><p>"How is Kol?" Charlotte asked as she got in one of Klaus' cars and drove away.<p>

"He is about one more drink away from embarrassing himself." Smiled Klaus

"Well you'd hope, the two of you have been at it all day."

"What did you do today?" Klaus asked

Charlotte accelerated way past the legal limit.

"Spent the day at the house, had some girl time with Bekah and read some books." Charlotte shrugged; thankfully nothing in Mystic Falls was too far away from each other.

"It sounds delightfully uneventful." The hybrid replied

"It was, much to my chagrin." Charlotte pouted

"I'd rather you be safe, love. No one else knows about you apart from my family and I'd like to keep it that way."

"Always the mighty protector, Nik."

"Only for you, sweetheart, only for you."

Charlotte parked the car opposite the town square and got out of the car.

"Well, my hero. Why don't you do me a favour and walk outside the grill?" said Charlotte as she walked to a park bench outside the grill and sat down, crossing her legs, she was wearing a pair of simple black leggings and a sleeveless low cut v-neck black top with no jacket.

She turned her head to the left and saw the love of her life, she ended the phone call and put the phone down.

"And to what do I owe for this pleasant surprise?" Klaus asked as he sat down, not helping it but his eyes remained on her chest for quite a few moments

Charlotte scooted closer to him and he wrapped an arm around her, she rested her head against his shoulder.

"I missed you." Said Charlotte as she looked up to Klaus, "And I've been having dreams again."

"I missed you too, what of?" Nik asked her

"You." She said simply and he didn't push on the subject, which she was more than thankful for, "So where is Kol?"

"Attempting to flirt with a psychopathic doctor." Klaus shrugged

Charlotte tapped him playfully on the leg whilst she rolled her eyes.

* * *

><p>The moon was on the rise in the night sky.<p>

Finn proceeded to light torches on fire at each of the points of the pentagram drawn in salt with a circle surrounding it.

"The pentagram represents our connection to magic, and the salt is a symbol of the earth." Esther explained to everyone

"And the torches?" Bonnie asked

"Five torches," Esther replied, "One for each of my children."

Finn and Esther looked at each other.

"What's the spell you're doing?" Bonnie asked

"As the witch that cast the spell that made them vampires, I can also reserve it and when they become human again, they can be killed." Esther told them her plan, "As they are linked together as one, my brave Finn will be the sacrifice; with his death, will come theirs."

"And you're just willing to die?" Abby asked Finn

"My mother is releasing me from an eternity of shame." Said Finn, "It's not a sacrifice, it is a gift."

* * *

><p>Kol grabbed a pool cue as he watched Meredith play pool.<p>

"A woman of your calibre ought to choose better company." Kol teased her

Meredith chose to ignore him momentarily and continue her game.

"What's your name love?" Kol asked her

"None of your business." Meredith shot back before walking away

"Let's try that again, I'll start. I'm Kol."

"Why don't you get lost, Kol." As Meredith stepped away again

"And why would I do that? I like pretty little things with sharp tongues."

Kol stroked the side of Meredith's face and Meredith slapped his hand away.

Rick stepped beside the Original, "I'm pretty sure she told you get to lost."

"I'm pretty sure I don't care." Kol quipped back and turned around quickly.

Rick used this opportunity to stab him in the abdomen with a dagger dipped in white oak ash.

"Next time, take a hint." Rick murmured as Kol went limp in his arms and Meredith stood in front of them both, making sure that no one saw and she was also looking out for Klaus.

* * *

><p>Rebekah felt a brief pain before she felt the darkness take her over again, she knew the sensation all too well.<p>

Blood stopped circulating through her body, her skin turned grey and she could no longer breathe.

She fell to the ground.

Elena took this opportunity and used it to her advantage.

She bolted, running as fast as she could, because she didn't know how long Rebekah would be down for and she didn't care all too much either, as long as it was long enough to get to where she needed to go.

She formed a quick plan in her head.

* * *

><p>Finn extinguished his piece of wood that was on fire.<p>

All of a sudden, he felt a stabbing sharp pain in his stomach; he gasped and dropped the piece of wood.

He dropped to the ground.

"Something's wrong." Said Esther

* * *

><p>Klaus doubles over in pain, his stomach on fire before it takes his brain a second to register exactly what is going on.<p>

Charlotte panicked, "Klaus, what's going on?"

"Kol." He gasped, "We're linked as one; he's been daggered, go to the grill and stay safe."

In the blink of an eye, he was gone. Charlotte got up from the park bench that they were seated at and rushed inside the grill, accidently bumping in to a blonde teenager.

"I'm so sorry." Charlotte began; the blonde looked in to Charlotte's eyes.

"Who the hell are you?!" Caroline raised her voice

The tone of Caroline's voice alerted Charlotte that she was piecing something together, not good, she thought.

"Uh, really sorry," Said Charlotte, with her thick British accent before turning around to exit the grill, "Running late and all that jazz."

Caroline gripped her arm tightly; she was a vampire, thought Charlotte.

"Wait." Said Caroline, Caroline let go of the other girl's arm in an attempt to not scare the other girl.

Charlotte pushed her way through the doors, ignoring the vampire, she had to get outside.

Caroline followed her.

"Wait, please!" Caroline called; the two of them were on the grass and stood face to face, both taking in each other.

"What's your name?" Caroline asked her

"What's yours?" Charlotte asked instead of answering her

"Caroline Forbes." Caroline answered her, a million thoughts going through her head, was there another doppelganger?

She thought that Elena had gone mental last night when she was dancing with Klaus but now she was piecing together that maybe it wasn't Elena and maybe there was another doppelganger only now the looks were beginning to change because there was no doubt that the girl in front of her was human.

"Who are you?" Caroline tried again to get information

Charlotte laughed, like she had been reading Caroline's mind.

"Oh, you're Caroline. The neurotic, over-controlling baby vamp that no-one can stand. I'm your worst nightmare when provoked." Charlotte smiled

That ticked off the blonde, in an instant, Caroline went to attack her out of pure reflex but then she was on the ground withering in pain, her head felt like it was going to explode. Caroline groaned in agony.

Charlotte had one hand extended in front of her, her hand was open and slowly she began to curl her fingers into a fist, not closing it yet, then Charlotte opened her hand again as Caroline let out an ear pitching scream.

In less than twenty seconds, the pain had subsided only a little but it was no use, Charlotte was gone; Caroline laid on the grass and caught her breath, what the hell had just happened?

* * *

><p>Rick dragged Kol whom was slightly heavier than what he had been anticipating, to the back alley of the grill where both Damon and Stefan were waiting for him.<p>

"Here, I got him." Said Rick

"Tell your sexy friend that she's not bad." Damon commented

"It's good work." Agreed Stefan

Klaus raced down the stairs at an insane speed and pulled the dagger out of his brother's chest before slamming Alaric into a wall with a simple push.

Stefan raced to fight Klaus but Klaus threw him against a wall as well.

Klaus turned and faced Damon.

"I should have killed you months ago." Said Klaus

"Go on, do it." Damon dared him, "It's not going to stop Esther from killing you."

Klaus walked forward, "What did you say about my mother?"

"You didn't know I was friends with you mummy?" Damon taunted him, Klaus still had the dagger in one hand

"Yeah, we have a lot in common, Damon continued, "She hates you as much as I do."

Klaus let out an enraged roar when Elijah called out, "Leave him." which caused Klaus to stop immediately

Klaus turned around to see his brother at the top of the stairs leading to and from the alleyway.

"We still need him, Niklaus."

"What did mother do?" Klaus asked, Elijah said nothing, "What did she do Elijah?"

Elijah walked down the downs and up to Damon.

"Tell me where the witches are or I will call my sister and have her kill Elena right now."

Damon looked up at the clock tower.

"You told me we had until after nine." Damon argued

"Well I'm more than sure that Rebekah would be happy to start her work early." Shrugged Elijah

Klaus heard an ear-splitting scream and his stomach dropped, pure dread running through him.

_Charlotte_.

Klaus raced away from the alley and to Charlotte, only to see her standing over Caroline, he grabbed and carried her bridal style whilst he continued running.

* * *

><p>Rebekah gasped for air as her eye's flashed open, the pain had subsided and the invisible cloud that felt like it was suffocating her had lifted.<p>

It only took Rebekah a moment before she was on her feet, surveying the area around her.

Elena was gone.

Rebekah smiled before running forward.

"You can't hide Elena." She called out loudly

Elena kept running, she was almost there but then she tripped and fell to the ground.

"Not sure why I'm feeling under the weather. Must be your boys trying to find a loophole... No matter, I could chase you down on my worst day." Rebekah taunted

Elena got up and ran again.

Rebekah's arms engulfed Elena as they were at the entrance of another cavern.

"Boo." Rebekah said

Elena head butt the Original and pushed her back before jumping inside the new cavern.

"You little bitch." Rebekah fumed as she tried to make her way inside but was being blocked by an invisible barrier

"What is this?"

"Sorry, no vampires allowed." Said Elena with a shrug

* * *

><p>Meredith got an ice pack from her freezer and walked back in to her lounge room, placing the ice pack on Rick's head.<p>

"No, no, no. I need you to sit down." She said as she pushed him back into the chair a little further that he was trying to get out of.

"Elena's still out there, I need to go find her." He tried

"Shut up and listen." Meredith said seriously, "Stay seated, you might have a concussion."

"So this is your place yeah? You're kind of a sloth." Rick teased her as she sat down opposite him

"Housework is not high on my priority list." Meredith said, as she picked up a torch

"Yeah, I see that."

"Look at me." She said

"Pupil response is normal." She concluded as she shone the torch in his eyes.

Rick tried to sit up and groaned, sitting back down again.

"You might have a broken rib." Revealed Meredith, "Rest. Damon and Stefan are going to take care of Elena and I am going to take care of you."

Rick held her hand and smiled as thanks.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: And there we have it, this originally was going to be an extended chapter but I thought rather than make you guys wait, I'd just upload half of it and post the rest tomorrow. I'm still wrapping my head around this updating on a daily basis thing, ha ha, it's a bit strange! Let me know what you thought or if you have any idea's etc, I still am a bit undecided and would love to hear some scenarios. Xx<strong>


	13. Chapter Twelve

**AN: So I have had this chapter sitting on my computer for over a year, I wasn't overly happy with it then and my feelings about it haven't really changed in that time. However, with that being said, my life since the previous chapter has changed dramatically, and because of that, I feel that there has a been shift in my writing style and ethic. Regardless, thoughts and comments are always appreciated. I know that this update has greatly been anticipated and I would like to thank you all for your patience and messages to not give up on this and to pull the stick out my behind. **

* * *

><p>Klaus laid Charlotte down on their bed, she was out cold, and the powerful burst of magic in such a long time had taken its toll.<p>

He pulled the silk covers over her, letting her rest.

Klaus couldn't help but just stroke the side of her face with the back of his hand as he watched her sleep; her hair had fanned out of the pillow, framing her face. She looked as if she was at peace, and incredibly content as if not a care in the world.

"I will protect you at all costs and I will keep you safe." Klaus vowed quietly, "No matter what the consequences."

He sat down and watched her for a moment before he got up and left the house, but not before compelling two young women to watch over the love of his life.

He couldn't take any more chances, he wouldn't.

Not now that he had been reunited with his one true love, the thought of the pain of losing her to death again was almost to the brink of unbearable, let alone to actually experience it in reality. He couldn't wait another thousand years. This was his second chance, and he'd be damned if it would be wasted.

* * *

><p>Finn stood inside the pentagram and he turned his head as he heard the footsteps of his approaching brothers in the distance.<p>

"They're coming mother." Said Finn hurriedly, trying to hurry the ceremony and the proceedings along before it was too late to do so.

"No, it's too soon; the moon is not high enough." Esther said in a rush with a thousand thoughts clouding her mind, "Go! Quickly." She commanded to the Bennett witches, she needed them safe, they immediately ran for safety.

Esther would hold her own, she knew what she had to do.

Klaus, Elijah and Kol all walked through the forest and found the clearing that their brother and mother were.

"My sons, come forward." Said Esther as she too walked forward, only she entered the pentagram drawn of salt, she would not falter in front of them, not now, not ever. She was the one in control with the power to stop them, it was her children that should be afraid, not her.

"Stay beside me." Said Finn protectively as he held his hand out

"It's okay." Said Esther calmly, "They can't enter."

The flames from the torches rose dramatically as Kol stepped closer, he walked backwards as the heat was scorching.

"Well that's lovely; we're stuck out here while the favourite son plays sacrificial lamb." Kol said sarcastically and then his tone changed to quite serious "How pathetic you are, Finn."

"Be quiet, Kol. You're brother knows virtue you cannot even imagine." Esther defended him

"Whatever you think of us, killing us would be a horrific occurrence." Elijah pitched in, unhappiness marred his features, and being murdered without the ability to come back wasn't on his to-do list today.

"My only regret is that I did not let you die a thousand years ago." Said Esther, whilst Klaus paced

"Enough." Klaus thundered, "All this talk is boring me, end this now mother or I'll send you back to hell."

Klaus wanted a quick resolution, he wasn't concerned with his mother's head having to be on a platter in order to keep those he loved safe, he completed the task once, he would do it again.

"For a thousand years, Charlotte and I have been forced to watch you, felt the pain of every victim, suffered whilst you shed blood." Esther said forcefully which caused Niklaus to shut up immediately, "Even you Elijah, with your claim to nobility, you're no better. All of you, you're a curse on this earth, stretched out over generations. If you've come to plead for your life, I'm sorry; you've wasted your time. "

"You're bluffing about Charlotte." Klaus eyed her down

"Am I? Why don't you ask her about her nightmares?" Esther raised an eyebrow

"I will prove you wrong." Klaus vowed, "You're lying."

"No," shouted Esther, emptiness overcoming her, "Sisters! Do not abandon me!"

The flames engulfed the circle.

"Mother!" Finn shouted as he grabbed her from behind and hugged her close.

All the Original brothers had to shield their eyes for the fire was too bright, all of a sudden; the flames disappeared, and unfortunately, so did Esther and Finn.

Elijah, Kol and Niklaus looked at each other.

"You've got to be kidding me." Huffed Kol

* * *

><p>Rick gasped as he woke up suddenly; he must have fallen asleep on Meredith's couch and some time had passed, for the lights were off.<p>

He was feeling marginally better and got up from the couch, groaning softly as he did so, he walked to see Meredith sleeping on her bed comfortably so he walked back in to the kitchen, and took some painkillers when something on her nearby desk caught his eye so he picked it up and sifted through it to find detailed copies of the crime scenes or her ex boyfriend and Bill Forbes, he continued to sift through to find a dagger wrapped in a red cloth, part of the matching set that had gone missing.

His brain went in to overdrive.

Then he heard a gun click, "You weren't supposed to see that." Meredith said strongly

Rick looked up at her to see the gun pointed at him.

He didn't even have a moment to say anything before he pulled the trigger and shot him.

* * *

><p>"You can come out now; it seems your boys took care of the problem." Sighed Rebekah, unhappy that she wouldn't be able to get her revenge on Elena, at least today.<p>

Elena stood up, "How did they do that?"

"Damon turned your witch friend's mother into a vampire." Rebekah told her in a snarky tone of annoyance

"What?" Elena asked shocked, mouth agape, Bonnie filling her thoughts

"Quite clever actually, they needed to sever the witch line and well you can't be a witch and a vampire. In any case, you're free to go." Rebekah finished as she turned away and left the cavern and tunnels, heading home to her family and best friend leaving Elena alone.

* * *

><p>Klaus rushed home after Kol had disappeared and Elijah told him briefly that he was also leaving town.<p>

This evening had rattled him slightly, not that he would admit to anyone.

He knew of the power that his mother could channel, but what shook him the most was what she mentioned about Charlotte, not that he cared if his mother felt the pain of every victim.

He opened the door and shut it behind him; he could hear a fire roaring in the sitting room.

Using supernatural speed, he was there in an instant, he saw Charlotte flicking through his sketches.

She sensed his presence before he even said a word.

"Caroline Forbes." Charlotte said sharply as she held up a sketch of the blonde vampire.

Anger and distrust marred her features, Klaus opened his mouth but she interrupted him.

"What the hell is she doing on your sketch pad?!" Charlotte raised her voice

"It means nothing." Klaus dismissed, "Burn it for all I care."

She ripped from the book, tore it into several pieces and then threw the remains in the fire.

"Satisfied?" Klaus asked, an eyebrow raised

"You fancy her." Charlotte accused

"No, for a brief moment, she interested me because her spirit reminded me of you." He defended

"Be honest." She breathed

"I love you Charlotte, only you." He said strongly as he stood in front of her, holding her by the arms

"I would die for you." He looked into her eyes, "I have died for you."

"I love you too." Charlotte replied sighing, "Burn them, and burn them all."

He pressed a chaste kiss to her lips before he let her go, she sat at the piano and watched him as he ripped out pages and threw them in to the fire, as they shrivelled up and turned to ash, she couldn't help but smile.

He told her of all the events that happened since he brought her back to the manor, she listened dutifully.

He didn't mention Caroline again, or why Charlotte attacked her but it was pretty obvious as to why and it almost made him smirk.

Charlotte, _his Charlotte_, was undeniably jealous.

* * *

><p>Elena walked home pondering what had happened so far this week, it was just insane.<p>

Now she just couldn't believe that Damon had turned Abby and worst of all, Bonnie didn't even want to see her, not that she could blame her, she understood why but it didn't mean she had to be happy about it.

Hugging her coat closer to her, she let a few tears drop; she had thought without a doubt that Rebekah would really rip her head off, regardless of whether or not she promised her brother that she wouldn't.

Rebekah generally acted on emotions and Elena knew for a fact that Rebekah hated her unconditionally.

Elena walked up and down several streets, she has no idea on her final destination and in that moment she didn't care, she just needed to clear her head, so she continued to walk aimlessly.

* * *

><p>Klaus was burning his drawings in the blazing fireplace when Rebekah walked in.<p>

Charlotte stood up from the piano and gave the blonde a tight hug, "I'm glad you're alright, Bekah."

The blonde tried to smile but it didn't reach her eyes at all, after all, the events that had occurred had made to a very trying day.

"I'm heading out for a walk, I won't be long." Charlotte said to Klaus as she squeezed Rebekah's hand before leaving out the front door, taking Elijah's old cell phone with her, just in case she needed anything.

Klaus said nothing until he heard the front door close with a click.

"I thought you'd have gone by now." Klaus said full of emotion, Rebekah had a stony expression herself, "Elijah's leaving, Kol's fled, Esther and Finn are gone too."

Klaus threw another drawing in and watched it burn to ash.

"I hated you when I learned you killed our mother." Rebekah said honestly, "And I realise now that after a thousand years as a family, you're the only one that never left me."

"Well, aren't we a pair." Nik commented

"There's something I think you need to see." Rebekah said as she held up her phone for Klaus to see

"Going to brag about your skills as a torturer?" Klaus smirked, eyebrows raised

Rebekah chose to ignore the comment her brother had made, under normal circumstances it would have brought a smile to her features but unfortunately, this was not one of those times.

"Look at the images on the wall behind Elena." Rebekah pointed out as her brother watched the content on the phone carefully, "The natives told the story of our family history, now look at the images on the far wall, a native worshipping a great white oak tree."

"And? We burned that tree to the ground." Klaus dismissed where Rebekah was going with this, they needn't worry about matters long resolved

"Look at the markings that precede it, it's a native calendar."

Klaus opened his mouth but nothing came out, it couldn't be, it wasn't possible.

"This can't be right." He murmured

"A white oak tree three hundred years after we fled back to the old world. There must have been a sapling or a new tree to replace the old." Rebekah said worried, "That tree could kill us, it's not over Nik."

Klaus stared at Rebekah, the news sinking in; he opened his mouth yet closed it almost instantaneously for not knowing quite what to say, all he knew was that dread and panic was beginning to consume him.

With this news in addition to his mother attempting to kill him and his siblings, it was too much to consider the possibilities of what could happen.

They weren't in the clear, they weren't safe.

It wasn't over.

* * *

><p>Charlotte felt drained.<p>

There was simply no other way to describe it.

Her anger had briefly consumed her and she almost revelled in it, something which mildly terrified her.

The fact that she had actually genuinely enjoyed the rush of power it gave her was slightly concerning, she had enjoyed it a little too much.

But her anger had subsided and now she was left alone with her thoughts as she continued to walk the streets of Mystic Falls which were at this time, quiet.

At first when Charlotte had discovered the drawings of Caroline Forbes, she had felt absolutely livid. Why on earth would Niklaus be sketching her?

Was it some part of sick infatuation or obsession? Or something else? Charlotte wasn't sure which was worse.

Despite her earlier anger, this discovery revealed insight to Niklaus, whether it was one that Charlotte wanted or not, and it was this that led her to her current crossroad.

Charlotte had a duty and obligation as a witch, a servant of nature, to maintain the balance, and then there was her heart and love for Niklaus, which naturally, Charlotte felt weighed in heavily on the scales.

She knew that she was running out of time and that a decision would have to be made, and soon.

But how can one choose when each had just as much importance as the other?

Had Niklaus strayed so far that his love for her was no longer? And was that worth his death if she was wrong?

It was these sorts of questions that had Charlotte questioning herself more than ever, what if she chose wrong. There would be no repeats or do-over's, it would simply be that.

Over.

Her head began to throb, a part of her wanted to simply forgive him and offer him a chance at redemption (with a lot of grovelling), perhaps she was the one that was being harsh, unreasonable and jumping to conclusions.

After all, there had to be some leniency, he had thought for her to be dead for a thousand years, there would have been a time where solace was required.

Charlotte's mind was in over-drive with her constant analysis of pro's and con's from either side, that she didn't notice a young woman walking past her with quick haste.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: And there we have it. <strong>


	14. Chapter Thirteen

**AN: I'm shocked that I pumped this out too... **

* * *

><p>One thing that had been on Niklaus' mind since his last encounter with Esther was her sudden revelation about Charlotte feeling the pain of every single one of his victims for a thousand years that she had not been present with him and concerned him deeply.<p>

His so called mother had always held a good bluff and he was hoping to whatever God was out there listening that this was just that, a bluff.

It didn't take a genius to know that Niklaus' had been on an incredibly destructive path for a long time, he had slaughtered entire villages without remorse and killed innocents for fun, whether they were in his way or not.

He needed to know if there was any truth to his mother's words.

"Ever had a reoccurring dream? What was it about?" Klaus asked Charlotte in passing, she was going downstairs for breakfast whilst he was going upstairs.

"I have. But I wouldn't like to discuss it." Charlotte dismissed

This was all the confirmation that Klaus needed.

His mother for once had actually told the truth.

* * *

><p>Elena dialed Stefan as quickly as she could, hoping for once that both of the Salvatore brother's were together.<p>

"Hey." Answered Stefan

"Hey, I think I've discovered our mystery killer." Elena greeted, getting straight to the point

"Who?" asked Stefan

"I was out for a walk last night and you won't believe who I saw." Elena explained, "Katherine's back in town."

"Wait, what? That's impossible. Katherine wouldn't be within at least a 100 mile radius of Mystic Falls because of Klaus and his circus of a family."

"I know what I saw Stefan. She was here last night; she must have been here for a while and is behind the killings. Now we just need to figure out her plan."

"I don't know Elena, it just doesn't make sense. Katherine is on the run from Klaus, she wouldn't sacrifice herself without a good reason."

Elena sighed; Stefan did have a great point.

"Well she is definitely here now, so keep an eye out, okay?" Elena tried

"Yeah, I will. I'll let Damon know. Be careful, at least until we can figure out what her plan is or what she's planning."

"Thanks Stefan."

* * *

><p>"This mystery is not going to get solved any faster with you yelling at me, Carol." Liz Forbes said as both she and the Mayor of Mystic Falls walked across the street.<p>

"We have two council murders and an attempted murder on our hands. If you have a suspect, it is your duty to keep me in the loop." Carol replied, matching the Sheriff's footsteps

"No, it's my duty to make sure that I don't accuse an innocent person of being a serial killer." Liz shot back, she could understand the natural frustration that Carol had, she wanted to catch the dirt bag that was killing of the locals but not at the expense of condemning the wrong person.

"Just tell me who it is, Liz." Carol demanded

Liz didn't say a word as she opened the door, indicated her head for Carol to walk inside.

Carol sighed before walking in to the Sheriff's office.

* * *

><p>Alaric was laid down in a holding cell, his hand on his chest.<p>

All of a sudden he gasped for air, his eyes flew open and he sat up in an instant.

His eyes scanning for immediate danger, his hand that he had on his chest felt for any wounds.

He remembered vividly what had happened.

Meredith Fell had shot him.

He sat up on the bed that he on and continued to take in his current surroundings before he realised exactly where he was.

The only question on his mind was how did he get in here?

* * *

><p>"I didn't do it." Alaric told the Sheriff from behind bars, looking her dead in the eye<p>

"You're arresting him for what this nut job, Doctor Fell says?" Damon asked

"No, I'm detaining him; the cell is purely for his good." Liz explained, "You were shot, Dr. Fell used vampire blood to heal you."

"Dr. Fell is the one that shot me!" Rick argued

"Because you came at her with a knife." Liz interrogated

"Yeah, with a knife that I had found in her hidden in her things." Rick replied

"Are we going to ignore the fact that Rick is one of the victims?" Damon pitched in, Liz gave him a look

"Dr. Fell has indicated that his wounds could have been self-inflicted." Liz answered

"You think I shot and stabbed myself?" Rick asked shocked

"Look, I think that I don't know what to think." Liz said, "I've got nothing except murder weapons from your stash and a respected member of a founding family pointing a very long finger."

"She is setting me up." Rick replied, "I'm being framed here."

"Well that may be so." Liz agreed, "But I don't have any proof of that."

"Well we'll find some." Added Damon

"No." Liz interrupted, "Just stay out of this Damon. You getting involved is only going to make matters worse."

Damon gave her an offended look.

"Look, Liz." Damon tried

"Don't make me put you in that cell too." Liz snapped

* * *

><p>"What are we running? A marathon." Asked Matt as both he and Elena continued their current pace<p>

"If you can't keep up-" Elena said as she rounded a corner

"Elena, you can't keep outrunning your problems." Matt said as he slowed down to a walking pace, "Although it looks like you're going to try."

"I talked to Bonnie." He called out in a loud voice

Elena stopped jogging and turned around.

"What did she say?" Elena asked, catching her breath

"They're at her mom's house." Matt told her as he walked to catch up to her, "Abby's going to complete the transition."

"She decided to become a vampire?" Elena asked, confusion on her features

"Yeah, Caroline's going to help her through it, teach her control and stuff."

"Did Bonnie say? Is there anything that I can do?" Elena had felt utterly awful about Abby, she knew that Bonnie would have been absolutely distraught, and it felt that there was nothing that she could do to help, and she wanted to be there for her.

"She knows it's not your fault, Elena. She's just upset."

"Damon turned her mom into a vampire to save my life. It's absolutely my fault."

Elena turned away from Matt.

"You're going to make me run more." Said Matt

Elena's phone rang.

"Who is it?" Matt asked

Elena answered her phone, glancing at the caller ID first.

"Sheriff Forbes, everything okay?"

Matt's jaw tensed, hoping to God that there hadn't been another murder.

"He what?!"

* * *

><p>Charlotte sat down on a park bench in the middle of the town square; Esther sat down next to her, both staring off at the surroundings and space in front of them.<p>

"Invading my dreams now, Esther?" Charlotte asked

Esther chuckled at this, "I highly doubted you would have met me in person, this is simply second best."

"Your plan failed." Commented Charlotte, "So what happens now?"

"I always have a backup plan dear; you of all people should know this by now."

"And what of Niklaus?"

"Charlotte, you know just as much as I, our obligation as a witch and what our duty is to do. They are an abomination of nature, and we must fix my mistake that I created a thousand years ago."

"I cannot lose him again to death, Esther." Charlotte pleaded, "Is there any other way? What about the reversal of vampirism and allow for him to live a life as a werewolf that he was destined to have."

"And I cannot create all the rules, they are linked as one, if one dies, they all die." Esther explained, she loved her children dearly, but she had made a grave mistake which she had payed the price for

"So we just sit on the sidelines and see who dies first?" Charlotte asked, shock evident in her voice

"Niklaus will be reborn again, just as you have been." Esther avoided the question

"I know the prophecy well, Esther. But what of Rebekah, Elijah, Kol and Finn? Surely they do not deserve their fate that is about to be inflicted upon them."

Esther sighed, "Finn is ready for the next step. As for the rest of my children, they have all relished in murder, manipulation, and violence."

"I know of Niklaus' deeds, we felt the pain and horror of each individual -" Charlotte argued

"Yet, here you are, protecting him for his own crimes." Esther interrupted

"I love him, Esther. Love is unconditional, no matter what the person has done in the past. He would never intentionally put me in harm's way."

"There will be a day where he will falter, he will break his vow and you will feel the brunt force of his mercy towards innocent humans. You will soon be exposed to the true monster that lies within, I may have turned my children in to vampires but they created their inner demon themselves as they slaughter villages without a second glance and tortured without remorse. I beg of you Charlotte, come back to the fold, and do not allow for him to manipulate you in this manner."

"I appreciate your efforts Esther, truly I do. But I'm afraid that I have to decline your offer, my duty is to my heart and I'm not prepared to compromise that. My love and loyalty is to my husband, Nik."

"That loyalty will get you killed." Esther tried, "At least for now, think about it, I hope that you will reconsider my offer."

* * *

><p>"What do you say brother? You wanna go and get drunk?" Damon asked<p>

"Ah, I get it, I get it. You're bored." Stefan said, "Your best friend's in jail and you don't have anything better to do with yourself."

"Well there's that, and I was hoping you would help solve a murder." Despite the fact that the Sheriff had asked him to stay out of it, didn't exactly mean that would be his plans. Rick was a great friend, he couldn't just sit on the side lines.

"You don't seriously think that it's Katherine behind all of this do you?" Stefan's eyebrows rose

"I'm more concerned about the crazy psycho doctor." Shrugged Damon, "Besides, that could have been Katherine at the ball with Klaus which means they've teamed up."

"It must have been a hell of a deal for him to forgive her for her betrayal." Stefan noted

"He does seem to hold grudges doesn't he?" Damon thought out loud, "So the question is, what's her secret?"

"It's not her style of murders, and what is there to gain by killing council members?" asked Stefan

"Katherine could be compelling Dr. Fell, and they're using Rick as their fall guy." Damon answered

"It's a plausible theory, Damon, but why?"

"That's up to us to find out." Smiled Damon

* * *

><p><em>It was a splendid evening, the air was cool so the layers of her gown felt as if they did not weigh down on her, her hair was curled to perfection in an up-style on the left side, curls trickling down and framing her face. <em>

_The music was loud and grand as many instruments were being played; people were dancing around the room joyous as candle chandeliers flickered every so often._

_Goblets of wine were being passed around like a wildfire as everyone rejoiced. _

"_My lady." Elijah bowed_

_Charlotte smiled as she offered her hand, Elijah kissed it as she curtsied._

"_Eli, what a welcomed surprise." Charlotte greeted him_

"_What an interesting evening that Niklaus has planned indeed." Elijah commented_

"_You know that he would have no less." Charlotte winked_

_The sound of a man's throat clearing behind Elijah interrupted the light conversation as the man in question appeared._

"_Brother," Klaus nodded, before stepping forward to his wife, wrapping his arm around her waist and leading her away, "I would have no less for your birthday, you are everything to me."_

_As Klaus led Charlotte away, Charlotte couldn't help but notice the look of disappointment cross her brother-in-law's face, she turned her eye gaze to get a glimpse at Elijah to ensure that he was alright but he too had already walked away. _

* * *

><p>"You have to agree, Sheriff, there's no motive here." Rick tried, still in his holding cell, talking to Liz Forbes, trying to get her to see desperately that he was innocent.<p>

"Look both the medical examiner and my ex-husband got into altercations with Meredith Fell before their deaths. Now she said that you were a witness to her fight with Brian Walters." Liz explained

"So what are you saying? I was defending her honour?" Rick replied, "I barely knew her then."

"She said that she also told you that Bill had threatened to report her to the medical board for giving him vampire blood." Liz told him

"No she didn't." Rick denied

"A 2 am call on the night of he was killed?" Liz asked, "I pulled your records, you spoke with her for over an hour."

"Okay." Rick nodded before sitting down on the bed of his cell, "I uh, yes I, I remember calling her but I was drinking and I don't remember the conversation."

"Well do you have an alibi for the night that Brian Walters was killed?" Liz wanted to help Alaric, truly, but she also had a job to do and she wanted to ensure that she had the right person and if that person just so happened to be Alaric, she would have to uphold her duty as Sheriff and prosecute him.

"I was there the night of the Bridge fundraiser, until midnight and you saw me there." Rick said

"Time of death was between one and three am." Liz replied

"Well then I, I must have been at home sleeping." Rick told her, "I'm sure of it."

* * *

><p>"Thank you for meeting me, Mayor. I figured as head of the preservation society, you would be a good person to ask about the oldest trees in this community." Rebekah said, taking a sip of water before placing it down on the table separating the two women.<p>

"A long line of Lockwood women used to keep those records." Smiled Carol, "Back before any of them had actual jobs."

"I've been to the founder's archives but I can't seem to find anything on the tree that I'm looking for." Rebekah continued

"It probably got cut down. Big old tree's built this town back in the 1900's." Carol took a sip of her coffee

Stefan and Damon walked in to the grill, Damon immediately spotting Malibu Barbie.

"Ooh, she devil at nine o'clock." He commented, Rebekah heard the comment and glanced at him annoyed

"Do you happen to know who kept the milling ledgers during that period?"

"Back then, all the logging mills were owned by the Salvatore's." Rebekah nodded and glanced again in the brother's direction as they sat down at the bar.

"So what does a medical examiner, Bill Forbes, and Alaric Saltzman have in common?" Damon asked his brother as he poured himself a drink

"They were all on the founder's council, Damon, that's what they have in common." Stefan poured his own drink before taking a large gulp

"But why them? Brian Walters and Alaric Saltzman aren't founding families. I mean, hey, at least in 1912 they killed a Salvatore." Damon speculated

"And which Salvatore would that be?" Rebekah asked, intruding on their brother murder mystery solving time.

* * *

><p>Elena leaned against her car in the hospital parking lot, arms crossed over her chest in an attempt for additional warmth.<p>

There was a part of her that she knew should just let the Sheriff do her job but there was another part of her that had to help Rick clear his name.

She heard a door shut and rushed over to the car which Meredith Fell had just gotten out of.

Meredith saw Elena and shook her head; she didn't have time for this.

"I'm going in to surgery so whatever case you have against Alaric, you better make it quick." Meredith said

"I don't have to make a case, he didn't do anything." Elena replied

"How do you know?" Meredith argued, "Sure, you live him, he takes care of you. But do you really know anything about him?"

"I know enough." Elena reasoned

"Let me tell you what I know, he was arrested for fighting four times under the age of twenty one. When he was at Duke, his future wife, Isobel, filed a restraining order against him, twice, although then she married him so I guess that says more about her."

"Okay, you're making all of this up." Elena said

"Am I?" Meredith asked, "How would you know? You took pity on a borderline alcoholic vampire hunter and you never even thought to look any deeper."

"How could you do this to him?" Elena asked confused, "He didn't kill anyone and you know it."

"You date vampires, Elena; it shouldn't come as a shock to you that your guardian is a murderer." Meredith said before walking away leaving Elena speechless.

* * *

><p>"So Zachariah Salvatore was your nephew?" Rebekah asked as she took a sip of what the boys were drinking, she needed to find out as much information about the white oak tree as she could.<p>

"Well our father knocked up one of the maids during the civil war, she had a son, but as far as anyone knew, Stefan and I were dead." Damon answered, "Family name had to go somewhere."

"And your family owned the logging mills back then?" Rebekah asked

Stefan and Damon gave her a look of surprise.

"You're asking a lot of questions." Commented Damon

"I'm just researching the town's history." Rebekah brushed off, "I grew up here after all."

"You know you don't have to disguise your true intentions blondie Bex." Damon smiled, "If you want more sex, just ask for it."

"Not enough liquor in the world." Rebekah shut him down

"Oh come on, it was too good for you to be this hostile." Damon continued as Stefan feeling more awkward by the minute considering both of them had slept with the blonde, grabbing his glass and bottle of scotch for re-fills; he got up and sat in the seat on the other side of Damon.

"You'll have to excuse my little brother." Damon said, "He's jaunting for something positive."

"I'm not jaunting." Stefan pitched in

Rebekah sat in the seat that Stefan had previously occupied.

"So did they ever catch the killer?" she asked

"Nope, wrote it all off on vampires." Damon answered

"Maybe it was a vampire." Rebekah added

"Yeah, yeah maybe it was a vampire, Damon." Stefan smiled at his brother

"Don't think for a second that you didn't cross my mind too brother." Damon defended himself, "But these murders weren't your style, were they?"

"Plus there weren't any other vampires circulating around then." Damon added as an after-thought

"Well there was one other vampire." Stefan replied, "Remember Sage?"

"Oh, right." Nodded Damon, "Sage. Speaking of great sex... Ooh."

"I knew a Sage once." Rebekah added, "Trashy little thing."

"You really think it was Sage killing all those founders back then?" Damon asked, well that certainly put a new theory and spanner in the works

"The town questioned every growing man in Mystic Falls. It probably never occurred to them that a woman could be behind it." Stefan reasoned

"Hmmm." Thought Damon

* * *

><p><em>Klaus jolted awake, eyes flashing open in an instant, brushing his hair out of his eyes, and blinking a few times, the sun was blinding, he looked down at where he was, in a meadow somewhere, abundant with flowers and stark naked.<em>

_Looking down at his hands trying to figure out exactly what happened in what order, he noticed the dried blood and beside him was a brunette woman, her clothes were ripped and torn to shreds and the fabric was completely blood soaked. _

_All of a sudden, flashes of memories overwhelmed him, he was chasing her, she tried to outrun him as fast as she could but she had tripped and it was all over from there, he couldn't control the hunger, the urge, the smell of her sweet blood that called out to him like no other scent in the world. _

_He recalled tearing at her gown and flesh, and hearing her screams and desperate plea's. _

"_I'm sorry." Klaus cried, "I'm so sorry, Charlotte! Come back to me!"_

_But she was not breathing, and hadn't been for some time, it was too late, she was already gone, and at his own hands._

* * *

><p>"So, uh –" Rebekah started as another drink was poured, "Tell me more about your old relatives. I heard they tore down half the woods to build this town."<p>

"Easy there lushy pants, it's been a hoot and a half but its boys night and you weren't invited." Damon said, grabbing a fresh bottle, standing up and walking away

Rebekah looked him up and down, giving a small pout.

Stefan grabbed to glasses, forcing a smile before walking away following his brother.

* * *

><p><em>After burying Charlotte, Niklaus fled until he found himself in a new village.<em>

_In the distance approaching were several men on horses, all equipped with swords. Soldiers, thought Klaus._

"_Who are you?" one of them asked, "What are you doing out here?" _

"_My name is Klaus, my family have been murdered, I was lucky to escape. I seek refuge and wish to train as a soldier to protect those that require it."_

* * *

><p>Caroline tapped her phone with her nails, she had contemplated calling Elena for hours yet here she was, still sitting around staring at her phone.<p>

Caroline hadn't told anyone about the witch incident that she had encountered.

Biting the bullet, Caroline dialed Elena's phone, hoping that her friend would answer before she chickened out.

"Care, hey." Elena said

Caroline sighed, "Elena, hi. Look I really need to talk to you about something."

"Is it about Bonnie? Is she okay? How's Abby going?" Elena asked

"It's got nothing to do with that, it's something else." Caroline said, "I think that there is another doppelganger, except that she is a witch, and I know that this sounds really crazy, but her eyes were blue."

"Whoa, Caroline, are you sure? Tell me everything." Elena replied

* * *

><p><em>Klaus was painting a portrait of Charlotte of a small oval shaped piece of wood, it was not perfect by any means but held a great likeness to his deceased wife.<em>

_It had been a very trying day, today was Charlotte's birthday and he could not help but think of her now more than ever now that he was at war._

_Despite the fact that no one suspected he was a vampire, and he knew that he would survive a battle, for swords in battle were not made out of wood let alone the wood of a white oak tree._

"_I will find you, no matter what the cost." Klaus vowed to himself as he watched the paint dry, he would remain strong for her, in the hope that she would one day return._

_He kept it on hand with him always._

Klaus had spent the day cleaning through boxes, a fairly mundane task for the original hybrid, he had kept all items that reminded him of Charlotte throughout the years, waiting for the day that she would come back home.

Right at the bottom of his current box was an old piece of wood; he picked it up and turned it over, his current breath catching in his throat.

He could still remember the day he had painted it, vividly.

Gazing upon the painting of her, he ran his finger against it, a smile forming on his lips.

He was so incredibly thankful that Charlotte had returned to him, this woman was his equal; he loved her more than he cared to admit.

He was growing increasingly concerned about his mother's plan, he had sent Kol to spy on Elena's little brother, Jeremy. Elijah was God knows where, and Rebekah was tracking down the white oak tree that was another issue.

After the link, stake issue, doppelganger blood and his mother were dealt with, Klaus planned to whisk Charlotte away from this one pony town where they could have a fresh start, together.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: There we have it - we're finally almost back on track to were this story is heading...<strong>


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